WR Trey Palmer’s future in New Orleans could be explosive or non-existent

By Ross Jackson

For players returning from injured reserve, their future with a franchise is always a little uncertain. One New Orleans Saints player, wide receiver Trey Palmer,  could provide the team a viable boost in 2026 as he works to return from combined nagging ankle and hamstring issues which kept him off of the field in 2025.

Palmer landed with the Saints via a waiver acquisition after he was waived during roster cuts by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

By picking up the former LSU Tiger on waivers, the Saints were awarded the remaining terms of his agreement. Because of that, New Orleans now has the speedy receiver under contract through the 2026 season.

The receiver could add to the team’s pass-catching corps by bringing another deep threat to the fold.

His 4.33-second 40-yard-dash during the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine was the fastest of the wide receiver class that year and during his second season with the Buccaneers, he averaged 14.3 yards per catch. He also has some experience as a punt returner.

The 6-foot, 192-pound sixth-round selection could help the Saints fill the void left following the trade deadline move that sent former Saints wide receiver Rashid Shaheed to the Seattle Seahawks. 

However, should his injury concerns persist, those opportunities will be limited or, in the worst-case, be entirely non-existent. 

Palmer has a chance to catch on with a wide receiver room in need of more big-play potential and talent. He could be a part of the forward progress the team hopes to strike in this year’s offseason.

With a foundation potentially set with wide receiver Chris Olave, Devaughn Vele, Ja’Lynn Polk and Palmer, the Saints could come out of the draft with one more young playmaker to round out the room. 

Further competition is set to be present with options like Samori Toure, Dante Pettis and Kevin Austin Jr. all with a chance to return to the team and former Canadian Football League star Damien Alford being added to the mix.

Should Palmer’s future pan out with the Saints, a room loaded with Olave, Vele, Polk, Palmer and a top wideout such as Ohio State’s Carnell Tate would be quite the arsenal with which to equip second-year quarterback Tyler Shough.