Michael Thomas surprisingly missed all of last season due to recurring ankle issues. Thomas waited to get surgery on two ligaments in his left ankle last summer, which ultimately caused a setback. The Saints -- and fantasy football owners -- are hoping that Thomas' injury issues are behind him and he can regain his 2019 form. During that season, the veteran wide receiver had 149 receptions (185 receptions) for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns.
However, Thomas is currently dealing with a hamstring injury, which could scare away some fantasy owners from drafting him in the early rounds of their fantasy drafts. Below, we'll take a look at Thomas' fantasy outlook and where he stands in ADP.
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Michael Thomas Injury Update: How long will Saints' WR be out?
The veteran wide receiver looked to be on track to play in the Saints' regular-season opener, but head coach Dennis Allen said Sunday that Thomas has a hamstring injury, according to Nick Underhill. Allen did not give a timetable or any additional news about the injury. However, beat writer Larry Holder wrote on Tuesday that the star wide receiver's injury "doesn't sound too serious, but added that "the injury will be monitored." For now, Thomas still feels likely to suit up in Week 1, and the good news is he's not dealing with anything foot or ankle related like last year.
As we know with soft tissue injuries, there's always a heightened chance of a setback. Surprisingly, this is not the first time Thomas has dealt with a hamstring injury. In 2020, the 29-year-old wide receiver suffered a hamstring injury during practice, which kept him out for two weeks.
If Thomas isn't ready to play by Week 1, the Saints' top-three wide receivers will be rookie Chris Olave, Jarvis Landry, and Marquez Callaway. Last season, Callaway led the Saints with 87 targets to go along with 46 receptions for 698 yards and six touchdowns. That being said, if Thomas is at 100 percent, we could pencil him in as a WR1, as he will be targeted often by quarterback Jameis Winston this season.
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Michael Thomas fantasy ranking and ADP
SN Fantasy has the three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver ranked No. 22 among WRs in standard and No. 20 in PPR formats this season. When healthy, Thomas can easily live up to this ranking, however, there might be some doubts from some fantasy owners, as he has a new head coach and quarterback and a more crowded group of wide receivers to contend with. The last time we saw Thomas on the field, Drew Brees was throwing to him.
In his injury-plagued 2020 season, Thomas only had 40 receptions (55 targets) for 438 yards in seven games. He did not score a single touchdown, which significantly hurt his standing in fantasy football. However, when we look back at what Thomas did in '19, it was the polar opposite. The two-time All-Pro had a league-leading 149 receptions (185 targets) for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns. During that season, he recorded 10 games with 100-plus receiving yards and 11 games with double-digit fantasy points in standard leagues. The 6-3, 212-pound pass catcher was also a monster in PPR leagues , recording 14 games with 15-plus fantasy points.
Heading into this season, FantasyPros has Thomas' ADP at No. 64 overall and WR27. The other receivers projected around the veteran wideout are Darnell Mooney (WR25), Allen Robinson (WR26), Amari Cooper (WR28), and Jerry Jeudy (WR29). This is a perfect spot for Thomas, as he's mixed in with guys who are on new teams (Cooper and Robinson) and another one who is coming back from injury (Jeudy). If he can be anything like we saw in '19, Thomas could be a steal for whoever picks him up in fantasy football this season.
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Michael Thomas' fantasy outlook 2022
The question with Thomas is how much risk you can stomach. He can be regarded as one of the best wide receivers in the league or at least put himself in the convo if he can stay healthy, but Draft Sharks' exclusive Injury Predictor tool believes that the veteran wide receiver has an 81-percent chance of injury this season and could miss close to two games. We know the potential is there for him to miss more. Despite the recent string of injuries, Thomas did a good job of staying healthy through the first four years of his career. Over that span, Thomas averaged 117.5 receptions (150.5 targets) for 1,378 yards and nine touchdowns per season. He also had a ridiculous catch percentage of 78.1.
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When he enters back onto the field this season, Thomas should resume his role as the team's No.1 wide receiver. However, Winston has other players that will take away from the veteran's target share, such as Alvin Kamara, Chris Olave, Jarvis Landry, Marquez Callaway, and Taysom Hill. We should not expect Thomas to have 185 targets this season, but it's not out of the realm of possibility to see 120 looks.
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With all that being said, Thomas can be one of the must-start wide receivers in fantasy if things break his way. First and foremost, Thomas' health will be most important as he deals with a hamstring injury on top of his past ankle issues. If the health is good, he'll be playing in an offense that he's familiar with and has a starting quarterback, who can and will throw the ball a ton. Thomas is likely a fifth- or sixth-round wide receiver in fantasy right now, but he could easily outproduce that.
