Dennis Allen says he had a great conversation with #Saints WR Michael Thomas today. "We all feel like it won't be very long before we see him back out on the practice field."
— Ross Jackson (@RossJacksonNOLA) July 26, 2022
It has been a long road since New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas sustained an ankle injury in the first game of the 2020 season. Since then, he’s undergone two surgeries, missed the 2021 season, and heads into training camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. However, the feeling within the Saints facility on Tuesday evening was one of palpable optimism.
“I had a great conversation with (Thomas) today,” said head coach Dennis Allen. “We all feel like it won’t be very long before we see him back out on the practice field.” Allen’s optimism echoed that of general manager Mickey Loomis who noted “soon” as the timeline for the All-Pro receiver’s return.
Allen also said that the timeline for Thomas’s return would be “soon” and that they feel good about his progress, further supporting Loomis’s comments. Last year, without Thomas available, the Saints failed to produce an 800-yard receiver and fell to the bottom of the league in passing yardage. This accompanied a season where the team started four different quarterbacks and threw the third fewest passes in the NFL.
The last time Thomas was healthy and played a full season for the Saints, he broke Marvin Harrison’s long-standing single-season receptions record. Thomas reeled in 149 catches for 1,725 receiving yards and 9 touchdown catches. While getting that level of production back in 2022 is both unlikely and to a point unnecessary following the additions of wideouts Jarvis Landry and Chris Olave, getting Thomas back to even his 2016 level of production would be a massive win for the Saints.