Jordyn Tyson continues to get a significant amount of buzz after being selected No. 8 overall by the New Orleans Saints in the 2026 NFL Draft. One of the handful of rookies that has futures bets available to play on DraftKings, let's break down Jordyn Tyson's 2026 projection and how it compares to what the market is offering.

Breaking Down Jordyn Tyson's Stat Projections

Jordyn Tyson Projections via DraftKings

• Over/Under Receiving Yards: 774.5 (-110/-110)
• Receiving TDs Milestones: 6+ (-130), 8+ (+200), 10+ (+550), 12+ (+1200)

Jordyn Tyson Projections via Fantasy Life's fantasy football projections:

• Receiving Yards: 947 (!!)
• Receptions/Targets: 78/119
• Receiving TDs: 5.3

The Saints should feel optimistic going into the 2026 season. The NFC South was one of the least competitive divisions, with three teams, including the division winner, the Carolina Panthers, finishing 8-9. New Orleans finished at the bottom of the standings at 6-11, but ended the year winning four of its final five games.

You could attribute that to the mid-season decision to make second-round rookie quarterback Tyler Shough the starter. From Weeks 12-18, he finished fifth in the league with 1,798 passing yards, and his 69.7% completion rate was the highest among quarterbacks that had at least 200 pass attempts.

It has been a long time since the Saints have had a perennial 1-2 punch at wide receiver, and with 2022 first-round pick Chris Olave and 2026 first-round pick Jordyn Tyson, they could have a dangerous aerial attack.

What Tyson brings to Saints head coach Kellen Moore’s offense is versatility. Tyson can move around and line up in different positions. In his college career, he lined up out wide on 68.3% of snaps and 31.1% in the slot, and in his 2024 season at Arizona State, that was nearly split at 56.3% wide and 42.6% in the slot.

When you’re the top receiver on your team, like Tyson was at ASU, your opponents’ game plan revolves around stopping you, so he saw the best defensive backs and excelled. Last season against man coverage, he posted the eighth-most receptions in the country (23), averaging 12.3 yards per catch, and 3.9 yards after the catch.

What could make Tyson into a breakout star is becoming someone you can confidently throw to in the toughest situations. In his final two years at Arizona State, he finished with a 54.8% contested catch rate and just three career fumbles. That could help Shough, whose 63.2% catchable rate vs. man was 23rd in the NFL last year.

Tyson moves the chains; 36% of his targets came from the 10-19 yard range, and he converted 12% of routes into first downs. Shough excelled in that 10-19 yard range, with his 118.7 passer rating.

Olave could still be treated as the primary receiver in the Saints’ offense, which means he will likely draw the opponents’ top corners and double coverage. With Tyson's above-average route running and ability to gain separation, doing that against CB2s could help him put up tremendous stats.

What could potentially make Tyson break through all of his projections and quickly become one of the fastest rising fantasy stars is what the Saints’ wide receiver room could look like by the end of the season.

There were rumors just before the 2025 trade deadline that Olave might be traded. That did not happen, but those rumors could resurface during the 2026 season. Olave is in the final year of his rookie contract and is set to become one of the highest-paid at his position.

The Saints went heavy on wide receivers in this past draft; not only did they select Tyson with the eighth overall pick, but also North Dakota State’s Bryce Lance in the fourth round, and LSU’s Barion Brown in the sixth. They also traded for former Patriots WR Ja’Lynn Polk at the start of the 2025 season, but he never played due to injury.

With these moves, are the Saints setting up for life after Olave? If he is dealt at any point during the season, Tyson likely becomes the top target for Shough.

Even if Olave remains on the team, Tyson could still be in for an excellent season. With his route-running abilities and potentially seeing one-on-one coverage opposite WR1 Olave, he could become the star of this Saints’ pass attack.

His receiving touchdown projections may be tougher to reach. In recent history, the only rookie receiver to get six receiving touchdowns as a second option to a top-tier wide receiver was Calvin Ridley opposite Julio Jones in 2018 with the Falcons. 

Of the 19 passing touchdowns by the Saints last year, Olave caught nine, and Juwan Johnson was second with three. Tyson could be the guy to target in between the 20s, but Olave and Johnson may still be the guys Shough looks for in the red zone.

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