Devaughn Vele — 2026 Fantasy Outlook

Vele's college production was unremarkable across three seasons at Utah State and Colorado State (23/389/1, 55/695/5, and 43/93/3 over 37 games), and combined with him entering his rookie year at age 26, he was an easy player to overlook. Denver took a flier on him in the seventh round of the 2024 draft.

He opened his rookie season with a perfect outing in Week 1, hauling in all eight of his targets for 39 yards, but a rib injury sidelined him for the next four games, and Vele was a healthy inactive for three others. Over his final 12 games, he turned in flex-worthy fantasy value six times (4/78, 4/39/1, 4/66, 6/80, 2/21/1, and 4/50/1), and Vele held down WR2-level snap counts in 10 of those contests. His size advantage (6’4” and 210 lbs.) helps his scoring in the red zone, and he should be better equipped to assist in blocking.

The Saints acquired Vele last August and gave him low WR2 snaps (39.9%) while having over 85% of their snaps across four games from Week 10 to Week 14. He battled a hip issue in September, missing three games to end the year due to a shoulder issue. Vele finished with 25 catches for 293 yards and two touchdowns on 40 targets, but delivered only two playable games (8/93/1 and 5/69).