Saints Rookie WR Bub Means Is Officially Done For The Year

While not surprising, the absence of a promising Saints rookie for the final two games became official on Thursday.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Bub Means (16) catches a touchdown pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers / Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

New Orleans Saints rookie wide receiver Bub Means is officially out for the rest of this season, missing his team's last two contests by reverting to injured reserve.

According to Thursday's NFL transaction wire, the 21-day practice window for the Saints to activate Means from injured reserve has expired. Per league rules, that means the affected player must miss the remainder of the season.

Means, 23, was a rookie fifth-round choice by the Saints out of Pitt. He started collegiately at Tennessee in 2019 before transferring to Louisiana Tech in 2020. He played there for two years before transferring to Pitt for his final two years and led the Panthers with 41 receptions for 721 yards and six touchdowns during the 2023 campaign.

Means was slowed by a leg injury throughout training camp and preseason. He was active for four of the regular seasons first five games, but played a collective 19 offensive snaps and had no catches on one target.

Seeing his first significant action (50 snaps) in Week 6 against Tampa Bay, Means showed promise. He caught five passes on eight targets for 45 yards, including an impressive touchdown reception from fellow rookie fifth-round choice, QB Spencer Rattler.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Bub Means (16) runs after a catch against the San Francisco 49ers / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Means followed that up with his first career start against the Denver Broncos in Week 7, catching three balls for 37 yards. He'd have a 36-yard reception against the Chargers the week after, but also suffered a severe ankle injury early in that game. It turned out to be his last action of the year.

The injury sidelined Means for three games. After placing him on injured reserve, Means was eligible to return the week prior to New Orleans facing the New York Giants on December 8.

While Means practiced sporadically and in limited duty, he was never officially activated from injured reserve. Interim head coach Darren Rizzi said recently that Means had a setback during recovery, thus ending his year.

Bub Means caught nine passes on 15 targets for 118 yards and a touchdown. Seven of his receptions resulted in a first down or score. He was among several offensive weapons for the Saints that have missed significant time this year. That list includes fellow wideouts Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, and Cedrick Wilson, QB Derek Carr, RB Kendre Miller, and all-purpose weapon Taysom Hill.

New Orleans, now 5-10, will miss the playoffs for a fourth straight year. Their final two games are at home against the Raiders this Sunday and at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on January 5.