Even though the New Orleans Saints have only gotten about 10 games out of Michael Thomas over the past three seasons, the team is being far from stingy with his compensation. That might come back to bite them in 2023.
According to Saints insider Nick Underhill, new details on Thomas’ contract are out and they are interesting to say the least. Per the report, his compensation for 2023 includes a $30 million bonus if he is simply active for four games.
Thomas is already set to cash in a $31 million roster bonus during the season. All told, he’ll potentially be due upwards of $60 million by the end of the calendar year.
Unfortunately, those terms are likely to be way too difficult for the team to keep him on the roster. The Saints are more than $39 million over the cap and will have to make cuts somewhere in order to field a roster in 2023.
The conclusion that Underhill and most Saints fans in his comments have reached is that Thomas’ days in New Orleans are numbered.
From 2016 to 2019, Michael Thomas was the best wide receiver the NFL had seen since Calvin Johnson. He began his career with four straight seasons of over 1,100 receiving yards, making three Pro Bowls and two All-Pro selections in the process.
In 2019, Thomas broke the NFL single season receptions record with 149 – breaking the 20-year-old record previously held by Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison.
But Thomas started to break down in 2020 as a series of injuries limited him to seven games in 2020, a lost season in 2021 and three games in 2022.
Have we seen the last of Michael Thomas in a Saints uniform?