Saints star receiver Michael Thomas has been sensational since New Orleans selected him in the second round of the 2016 draft. Yes, he has benefited from having a Hall of Fame quarterback throwing him the football, but his hands, route-running, and athleticism suggest that he would excel in almost any offensive attack.
Through the first three years of his career, Thomas is averaging a whopping 107 receptions per season to go along with 1,262 yards and nearly eight touchdowns. His yardage and reception totals have improved each year, and he finished the 2018 campaign with 125 catches (on 147 targets) for 1,405 yards and nine scores. The advanced metrics value his work as well, as Pro Football Focus rated him as the No. 2 receiver in the league last season, and among receivers with at least 50 targets, he ranked third in the league in Defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement, which is Football Outsiders’ receiving metric.
And, now that he has completed the third year of his rookie contract, he is eligible for a long-term extension. He is due a comically low $1.148MM salary on the final year of his rookie pact in 2019, but both player and team would like to get a new contract hammered out this offseason. To that end, Thomas recently signed with agent Andrew Kessler of Athletes First after cutting ties with David Mulugheta in November.
Thomas and Mulugheta reportedly had a “difference of opinions,” and Thomas has now changed agents twice in his three professional seasons. It is unclear what exactly Thomas and Mulugheta did not see eye-to-eye on, but Thomas is set to cash in with his new representation.
The former Buckeye turns 26 next month, and he may reset the top of the receiver market. Presently, Odell Beckham Jr. is the top earner among wide receivers, as his recent extension is worth $90MM overall, has an $18MM average annual value, and includes $40.959MM in total guarantees. Antonio Brown ranks second in AAV with a $17MM/year mark (though he wants to redo his deal), and Mike Evans‘s contract has the second-highest total value ($82.5MM).
There was some chatter that OBJ could be the first receiver to hit the $100MM mark, and he may have gotten there if not for some injury and off-field issues. Thomas, who does not have any notable health or character red flags, could be the guy. It would not be surprising to see him land a five-year, $100MM pact with a $40MM+ guarantee.
Of course, the Saints (as always) do not have much cap space, so they will need to be careful about how they structure Thomas’ extension, assuming the two sides are able to come together on a deal. The guess here is that New Orleans will not risk letting Thomas get away and will hand him a record-setting accord before they even have to think about tagging him.