New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen provided an update on wide receiver Michael Thomas this week. Thomas saw his 2022 season cut short after suffering a toe injury during week 3’s road game against the Carolina Panthers. The injury Thomas reportedly suffered was a dislocated second toe, which required surgery.
Allen made it clear that Thomas is still recovering from his surgery, and that his main priority is to ensure that Thomas is 100% healthy when he steps back out on the field. Though he is hopeful that they’ll have him back during training camp later this year. Here’s his full quote:
“I don’t want to get into specifics on that, but yet, he’s making progress in the recovery,” Allen said, via the team’s website. “He’s not 100 percent, and we’re going to be cautious with it and take our time. We don’t want to put him out there until he’s 100 percent. . . . I expect him to be fully healthy and ready to go. When that point is, I don’t want to get into those speculations. But we feel good about where he’s at.”
Thomas missed nine games in 2020 and all the 2021 season due to ankle injuries. When it was first reported that Michael Thomas agreed to restructure his contract with the Saints, it was speculated that the two sides were preparing to go their separate ways. Fortunately, things did not pan out that way. Thomas agreed to a new deal, laced heavily with incentives, to remain with the team and begin working with new starting quarterback Derek Carr.
Carr was released from the Las Vegas Raiders at the tail end of the 2022 season. Saints were quick to show interest in bringing Carr to New Orleans, and they didn’t change up their stance even after the quarterback flirted with other teams like the New York Jets. According to Carr, Thomas was among one of the veterans that was actively attempting to recruit him to play for the team.
Thomas is one of the league’s best receivers when healthy. Can he return to form? Time will tell.
