As of today, there are 13 days left until the New Orleans Saints officially begin their 2026 regular season. The Saints start their year on the road at the Detroit Lions on Sunday, Sept. 13. Our countdown to kickoff series continues with a look at Michael Thomas, the greatest Saint to wear the No. 13 jersey.
- Name (age): Michael Thomas
- Hometown: Woodland Hills, Calif.
- Position: Wide receiver
- Height, weight: 6-foot-3, 212 pounds
- College: Ohio State Buckeyes
- Relative Athletic Score: 9.12
- Drafted: Round 2, 47th overall in 2016 (Saints)
- NFL career: 7 years
A four-star recruit out of Taft High School in California, Thomas would play collegiately for the Ohio State Buckeyes after a year at Fort Union Military Academy in Virginia. He'd appear sparingly in 11 games as a freshman in 2012, catching 3 balls for 22 yards, then would redshirt the following season. In 2014, Thomas would win a starting job by mid-season and led the Buckeyes with 54 receptions and 799 yards with 9 touchdowns on the way
to the national championship. Thomas had 56 catches for 781 yards and 9 scores in 2015, leading Ohio State in all three categories, before declaring for the 2016 NFL Draft.
With a second round pick and the 47th overall selection in 2016, the New Orleans Saints took Michael Thomas off the board. He was the sixth wideout chosen, but would turn out to be by far the best of his position and one of the best overall players in his draft class. As a rookie, Thomas had 92 receptions for 1,137 yards and 9 touchdowns. He led the Saints in catches and scores, earning All-Rookie recognition. He'd be even better in 2017, leading the team with 104 catches and 1,245 yards with 5 scores.
Michael Thomas had an NFL-best 125 receptions for 1,405 yards and 9 touchdowns in 2018, breaking franchise records for catches and receiving yardage. He'd shatter both marks in 2019 with an eye-popping 149 catches and 1,725 yards to lead the NFL in each category. The 149 catches broke a 17-year single-season NFL record and earned him the 2019 NFL Offensive Player of the Year award. In his first four years between 2016 and 2019, no NFL player has more receptions or receiving yards than Thomas.
During the 2020 season opener, Thomas suffered a foot injury that kept him sidelined for nine games and hampered him greatly all year. He had only 40 catches for 438 yards with no scores, then missed all of 2021 following foot surgery. Thomas was never even close to the same player, appearing in only three games in 2022 and ten outings in 2023. After missing only one of his first 64 games, Thomas played in just 20 of a possible 67 contests through his last four years. He was still decently productive in those 20 outings, catching 95 balls for 1,057 yards, but nowhere near his earlier career production or effectiveness.
Michael Thomas had an injury-shortened career, but few NFL players have ever had a better four-year stretch. Even at a shadow of himself for his last few years, Thomas had 565 career receptions for 6,569 yards and 36 touchdowns. He averaged just shy of 7 catches and 79 receiving yards per game. Michael Thomas and Drew Brees are the only two Saints to ever earn NFL Player of the Year honors. Thomas was well on his way to a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame before injuries, but is still one of the most productive players in New Orleans franchise history with a litany of records to his credit.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Countdown to Kickoff: Michael Thomas is the Saints Player of Day 13
