We’re entering a quiet stretch on the NFL’s calendar, with few big events to get us through the summer until training camp. Sports talk radio around the country is filling dead air however they can. For Pittsburgh’s 93.7 The Fan, that means drumming up rumors about the Steelers trading for New Orleans Saints wide receiver Chris Olave.
Citing a text message from “someone who would be in the know,” 93.7’s Adam Crowley said that Olave was at the center of trade talks between the two teams. His co-host Andrew Fillipponi has misfired on trade reporting before, claiming that a deal sending San Francisco 49ers wideout Brandon Aiyuk to the Steelers “is in place. I think it’s just a matter of getting the very final details worked out. It’s a verbal agreement. He’s coming here. It’s a done deal.” When no deal materialized, Fillipponi defended himself by tweeting, “I’m not an insider. I’m not a news breaker.”
Now, to be clear, Crowley and Fillipponi are not the same person. They have their own sources. So does John Frascella, a former Bleacher Report contributor who also linked Olave to the Steelers, though he acknowledged that “sides are still far apart on any type of deal.” A more credible report came from PennLive’s Nick Farabaugh, who downplayed Pittsburgh’s interest as “due diligence” calls that happen all the time in the NFL, and that “New Orleans does not seem interested in trading Olave. As of this morning, nothing is close to a trade or imminent.”
The common thread here is that none of the people reporting on these trade talks cover the Saints or have connections to the team. It might make sense for the Steelers to reach out and gauge interest in a deal, but it wouldn’t make sense at all for the Saints to trade Olave. They just picked up the fifth-year option in his contract and need him to take point in Kellen Moore’s offense. Having an accomplished two-time 1,000-yard receiver on the field is vital for an inexperienced quarterback, whether it’s Tyler Shough or Spencer Rattler throwing to him.
If the Saints did consider trading Olave, they would need to get more back than the Steelers just gave up to trade for DK Metcalf. Pittsburgh gave up picks in Rounds 2 and 7 of the 2025 draft in exchange for Metcalf and the Seattle Seahawks’ fifth-round pick. The Steelers also shipped out George Pickens and a 2027 sixth-round pick for the Dallas Cowboys‘ 2026 third rounder and a Round 5 pick in 2027. Olave is younger than Metcalf and more productive than Pickens, so it would take at least a second-round pick to get the ball rolling.
Will a trade happen? Probably not. First-year head coach Kellen Moore has high expectations for Olave in 2025, and the young receiver is eager to work in his offense, too. That doesn’t mean a deal couldn’t happen if the Steelers make it worth their while. If the Saints’ season goes down the drain and they finally embrace a real rebuild, Pittsburgh could make them an offer they can’t refuse. But we aren’t there yet. At this point it sure looks like too much is being made out of too little discussion between two teams.