New Orleans SaintsOur read
Written Oct 17, from his facts through last season
A seventh-round pick a year ago, Matavao opened 2026 on IR before week 3 of 2026 even arrived, and the first five weeks went by without him playing a down. New Orleans dressed him for exactly one game in all of 2025, week 17, when he caught one pass for 10 yards. That is the entire professional record we are working from.
The path to playing time is closed from three directions. Juwan Johnson holds the job, Noah Fant is second, and Oscar Delp, a rookie, is already ahead of him. Last season Johnson and Chris Olave combined for 47% of the targets, and Matavao's own share was 1.0%. His average target traveled 2.5 yards downfield, the shortest area on the field, and he never touched the ball inside the ten. There is no hidden red-zone role waiting here.
We set his season at 5.5 points over 2 games, which tells you what we thought of his chances before the injury made it moot. The middle range runs 0 to 11, and the low end comes from seasons wiped out by injuries like this one. Even when he was healthy in 2025, the coaching staff chose not to play him for 16 straight weeks, and Kellen Moore and Doug Nussmeier are both back. Nothing changed in the building.
This is an easy release in a league with live rosters. Cut him, pick up a tight end who is practicing, and move on.