Saints rookie Jordyn Tyson reportedly out months with hamstring injury: What New Orleans can do at WR

The New Orleans Saints will be without prized rookie wide receiver Jordyn Tyson for a while. 

According to a report from NFL Media, Tyson will miss approximately two months due to a hamstring injury sustained during a training-camp practice last week. Tyson has been consulting with specialists and could begin the season on injured reserve as he rehabs from the injury. 

Tyson has a history of hamstring issues dating back to his time at Colorado and Arizona State, but the NFL Media report stated that this appears to be a new injury unrelated to his prior ailments. 

“I think my understanding of this one, any player that was put in his situation where your foot slips and you get shoved from behind, this has nothing to do with Jordyn’s history,” Saints coach Kellen Moore said at the time, via ESPN. “Any player in that situation probably has the same diagnosis coming out of this.”

The injury is a huge blow for the Saints, who selected Tyson with the No. 8 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft. The rookie was expected to team with star wideout Chris Olave to give second-year quarterback Tyler Shough a high-level duo to attack defenses in the passing game, and he was shining throughout New Orleans’ training camp.

Who fills Tyson’s spot?

In Tyson’s absence, No. 2 receiver duties likely fall to DeVaughn Vele, who served in that role after the Saints traded Rashid Shaheed to the eventual-champion Seattle Seahawks at midseason. Vele caught 25 passes for 293 yards and two touchdowns last year, with 20 of those grabs and 254 of those yards coming in the final five games of his season.

The Saints also have Tyson’s fellow 2026 draftees Bryce Lance (fourth round) and Barion Brown (sixth round) on the roster to provide depth behind Olave and Vele. It’s possible that one of them could emerge and earn a real role in Tyson’s extended absence, which could last into October.

It’s also possible that the Saints could dip into the free-agent market for wide receiver help. Former Chargers wideout Keenan Allen remains a free agent, for example, and he caught 108 passes for 1,243 yards and seven touchdowns in 2023 under Moore, who was the Chargers’ offensive coordinator at the time.

Allen is 34 years old now, though, and coming off a season where he averaged a career-low 45.7 receiving yards per game in his return to L.A. He wouldn’t be the most inspiring option to replace Tyson on the depth chart, but he could help the Saints hold down the fort until the rookie returns, if they choose to go in that direction.

There’s also the trade market potentially available to them. There’s been speculation that Patriots receiver Kayshon Boutte could be available, given New England’s newfound depth at the position after the team traded for A.J. Brown and signed Romeo Doubs. Boutte is reportedly having a standout camp, however, and that could make the Pats more reluctant to give him up in a trade.

Either way, the most likely course of action is for the Saints to let Tyson’s injury heal and hope he returns at full strength around a month into the NFL season. Still, it’s a rough way for Tyson to begin his NFL career, given how good he was reportedly looking during training camp.