New Orleans Saints Urged to Add Michael Thomas Replacement
After losing Michael Thomas, the fresh Orleans Saints may emerge from the 2024 NFL Draft with a great replacement and fresh deep threat for quarterback Derek Carr.
Thomas was released earlier this offseason to open up contract space for free agency, but with the draft approaching, New Orleans might find an improvement for Carr’s supporting cast in the vertical passing game.
“Michael Thomas is gone,” Josh Edwards writes for CBS Sports. “That creates a hole next to Chris Olave, despite Rashid Shaheed’s arrival. Brian Thomas Jr. possesses that classic X receiver skill set, which would allow Olave to line up around the formation.”
Thomas Jr., who stands 6 feet 4 and weighs 205 pounds, has the size to be an excellent red-zone target and the speed to be a deep danger in the passing game.
What Brian Thomas Jr. Can Offer the New Orleans Saints
Thomas Jr. carved himself a place at LSU last season, while sharing a receiving room with likely top-5 pick Malik Nabers.
Thomas Jr. caught 68 receptions for 1,177 yards and 17 touchdowns, averaging an impressive 17.3 yards per catch.
“Presents an appealing combination of size, length, and speed with experience working both inside and outside,” writes Lance Zierlein for NFL.com. “Thomas will occasionally go through the motions as a route runner, but he possesses the bend, athleticism, and speed required to improve.
“He’s elusive against press and can uncover swiftly below, but he still has to strengthen intermediate routes and play a little more physically in packed situations to become well-rounded. Thomas seldom struggles to create separation deep and could be depended on as an NFL team’s designated deep threat early in his career. Thomas is raw, but has the potential to become a WR1/2 in time.”
