Saints WR Michael Thomas Expected to Play in Week 1 vs. Falcons

The former Offensive Player of the Year has not played since the 2020 season.

Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas is poised to make his return to the football field for the first time in over a year on Sunday against the Falcons, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. 

Thomas, who missed most of the 2020 season and all of the ’21 campaign with an ankle injury and subsequent complications with his recovery, was previously listed as questionable for the Week 1 contest with a hamstring injury. He practiced for the first time in over a year in July but missed about three weeks of training camp due to the nagging hamstring.

When he last played in 2020, Thomas was far from the player that won the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year award during the ’19 season. He made just 40 catches for 438 yards and no scores in the seven games he played after returning from an ankle sprain. 

However, the last time that Thomas was on the field for a full season, he was magnificent. During the ’19 campaign, the now 29-year-old caught an NFL-record 149 passes for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns.

Thomas will look to return to that run of form beginning on Sunday as the Saints take on the Falcons at 1 p.m. ET. 

• Saints News Network: Saints Final Injury Report: Week 1

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