Devaughn Vele has quietly been one of the more productive receivers nobody drafted, averaging 15.7 PPR points per game as the second option in a New Orleans offense throwing 45.0 times per game. That is the good news. The bad news arrives Sunday in the form of a Las Vegas defense that has allowed opposing receivers a 44.1% catch rate, zero touchdowns and zero red zone targets through two games. Find out whether you should start or sit Devaughn Vele in Week 3.
Devaughn Vele Start or Sit Advice for Week 3
The volume case is genuinely strong. Vele has 16 targets for a 19.0% share, 12 catches for 133 yards and a touchdown, and a 75.0% catch rate that has held across two very different games. He saw nine looks in Detroit and seven in Baltimore, and his share of the team’s targets actually climbed in Week 2 even though New Orleans threw 22 fewer passes. Only Chris Olave has been busier.
The offense around him is the reason he is startable at all. Tyler Shough has thrown for 305.5 yards per game with 215.5 air yards and a 95.7 rating, New Orleans has passed on 63.4% of its plays, and the Saints have converted 71.4% of their red zone trips. When a team distributes 42.0 targets per game, the second receiver gets fed whether the matchup cooperates or not. Vele has also drawn two of those red zone looks and scored once, so unlike a lot of complementary receivers he has a short path to points and not just a long one.
His usage profile matters for what follows. Vele’s 102 air yards across two games work out to roughly 6.4 per target, and he has 31 YAC. He is a volume-and-intermediate receiver rather than a field-stretcher, which is why the catch rate is high and the yards per reception sits at 11.1.
The Biggest Fantasy Risk for Devaughn Vele in Week 3
Las Vegas has shut down exactly the kind of production Vele generates. The Raiders have held opposing receivers to 7.5 catches per game against a league mark of 11.1, a 44.1% catch rate against a league mark of 63.2%, and 5.0 receiving first downs per game. They have not allowed a touchdown to the position and have not conceded a single red zone target. Eight sacks and three interceptions with nine passes defensed explain the mechanism: pressure arrives, throws come out early, and the coverage is there.
There is one crack in it, and it is worth being precise about. Las Vegas is allowing 18.7 yards per reception and 140.0 receiving yards per game, so the damage they do absorb comes in chunks. Caleb Douglas caught five balls for 94 yards against them and Tre’ Harris turned one catch into 53. That is the profile of a defense you beat over the top rather than in front of, which is unfortunately not Vele’s game. Olave is the Saint built for this matchup.
The pass protection is the other concern and it compounds the first. New Orleans has already surrendered eight sacks in two games and left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. is out indefinitely after ankle surgery. Shough was dropped five times in Detroit. A pass-heavy offense missing its blindside protector against a front with eight sacks is the setup for an afternoon of quick, low-value throws, and that is precisely why this matchup grades out as one to avoid.
One honest caveat on all of it: this is a two-game sample, and the Raiders drew Miami and the Chargers, passing attacks roughly 14% below the league mark. The counterpoint is that Justin Herbert threw two interceptions at a 59.5 rating against them and Quentin Johnston caught one of five targets for seven yards. Two different offenses, same result. The schedule explanation only covers so much.
Fantasy Outlook for Devaughn Vele in Week 3
Vele is a Start in Week 3, and the recommendation rests almost entirely on opportunity rather than matchup. An offense throwing 45.0 times per game will find him six or seven looks, he has converted three quarters of what has come his way, and he has already shown up near the goal line. Something in the range of five catches for 50 yards is the sensible projection, with a red zone target the difference between a useful day and a forgettable one.
Temper the ceiling, though. This is a defense that has not allowed a receiver to score and gives up its yardage in single explosive plays rather than steady volume, and New Orleans is protecting Shough with a patched-together line. If your bench holds a receiver facing a soft secondary, that is the better play this week. Vele is the floor option, not the upside swing.
Find more Week 3 fantasy football start/sit coverage here!