Michael Thomas was the league’s top wide receiver five years ago. With an NFL-record 149 receptions at the end of the 2019 season, he led the league in receiving by more than 300 yards and was tied for third in the league with nine touchdowns.
Thomas’s production has drastically declined in the four seasons that have followed, totaling just 1,057 yards and four touchdowns. As a result, the New Orleans Saints released him on Wednesday, March 13, classifying him as a post-June 1 cut.
After a lengthy journey, let’s take a moment to reflect on the career of one of the few living remnants of the Sean Payton and Drew Brees era.
2012–15: Outstanding measurables, disappointing output
My area of expertise is college football and sports, so I would be negligent to ignore Thomas’ time in college. 2011 saw him declare his commitment to play for Ohio State as a four-star recruit fresh out of high school. His first campaign was unremarkable; he only had three catches for 22 yards. In his subsequent sophomore year, he redshirted and failed to log any numbers.
After finishing as the second-leading receiver (799 yards, 9 touchdowns) on a squad that mainly depended on Ezekiel Elliott in 2014, he finally began to establish himself. The 2015 season saw a minor decline in his output, with the same nine touchdowns and 781 yards—just 18 less than the previous year—being recorded. But because Elliott remained the offense’s main target, he led the team in receiving by more than 300 yards.
Though Thomas never gained more than 800 yards in a single season while in college, he demonstrated an excellent sense of where the end zone was and managed to contribute in a run-first scheme. Furthermore, his pre-draft measurements were close to 6-foot-3 and more than 210 pounds. In the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft, he was selected with the 47th overall pick.