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92 / 1,137 / 9.
Welcome to the Bigs, young man.
The New Orleans Saints second round pick (47th overall) in the 2016 NFL Draft turned out to be quite a catch (pun intended). Michael Thomas came out of Ohio State after 3 seasons, having accrued 1,602 yards on 113 receptions for 18 TDs in 39 games.
As a pro, he fell short of that college career total by just 21 receptions, 465 yards, and 9 TDs.
In 24 fewer games.
It’s safe to say @cantguardmike is special. Among rookie WRs, Thomas was #1 in receptions (by 27), #1 in yards (by 454), and #1 in TD receptions. Among the rest of the WRs, he didn’t fare too poorly, either.
He was 9th in receptions behind a laundry list of studs, 9th in receiving yards (behind those same studs), and part of a three-way tie at 6th for TDs.
#13 hauled in 76% of his 121 targets (for reference, Odell Beckham Jr caught around 59%, Antonio Brown caught 68%, and Julio Jones caught just over 64%). In fact, Thomas was the #3 WR in the NFL in catch percentage in 2016, beating out #4 Doug Baldwin by a whole point.
FYI - RBs (unsurprisingly) dominate the top of this list and it isn’t even close.
While Thomas did cough up two fumbles his rookie year and his adjusted impact sans a complementary coverage threat like Brandin Cooks remains to be seen, he’s but a young lad with a bright future.
In March, Thomas turns just 24, yet he’s still 6’3 with 10.5” hands (> than Shaq’s).
But I’m preaching to the choir here. We all know Thomas is the man, so kick back and enjoy 18 minutes of his majesty, courtesy of Saints highlight reel aficionado WhoDat4Life.
You can’t guard the man and you certainly shan’t sleep on him. He certainly doesn’t seem content with 92 / 1,137 / 9.
"Constantly reinvent yourself."
— Mike Thomas (@Cantguardmike) January 24, 2017
In case you missed it, check out Rev’s interview with Thomas here.