In the Drew Brees-Sean Payton era, the New Orleans Saints became known for their high powered offense and gaudy passing yards. That era from 2006-2020 alone produced 15 of the 27 1,000 yard receiving seasons in team history. Those years were highlighted by the leading receiver in team history, Marques Colston, the only receiving threat with multiple First Team All Pro selections, Michael Thomas, and one of the best tight ends in the league, Jimmy Graham. The Saints finished with two 1,000 yard receivers in 2011 (Colston, Graham), 2012 (Colston, Lance Moore), and 2016 (Brandin Cooks, Thomas.)
Prior to this era, Saints wide receivers were highlighted by Joe Horn and Eric Martin. Horn hit the ground running with three consecutive seasons over 1,250 yards upon his arrival in New Orleans in 2000. Martin was the lead receiver from the late 1980’s to early 1990’s.
The first Saints 1,000 yard receiver was Danny Abramowicz and the latest is Chris Olave. Here is a breakdown of those two and every receiver to cross the century mark in the Black & Gold.
Danny Abramowicz
1969: 1,015 yards
Wes Chandler
1979: 1,069 yards
Eric Martin
1988: 1,083 yards
1989: 1,090 yards
1992: 1,041 yards
Quinn Early
1995: 1,087 yards
Joe Horn
2000: 1,340 yards
2001: 1,265 yards
2002: 1,312 yards
2004: 1,399 yards
Willie Jackson
2001: 1,046 yards
Marques Colston
2006: 1,038 yards
2007: 1,202 yards
2009: 1,074 yards
2010: 1,023 yards
2011: 1,143 yards
2012: 1,154 yards
Jimmy Graham
2011: 1,310 yards
2013: 1,215 yards
Lance Moore
2012: 1,041 yards
Brandin Cooks
2015: 1,138 yards
2016: 1,173 yards
Michael Thomas
2016: 1,137 yards
2017: 1,245 yards
2018: 1,405 yards
2019: 1,725 yards
Chris Olave
2022: 1,042 yards
