Fantasy Alert: Saints’ Michael Thomas ‘Heading Towards’ Starting Week 1 After Injury

New Orleans Saints wide receiver
Michael Thomas is reportedly on track to play in Sunday’s Week 1 game
against the Atlanta Falcons after dealing with a hamstring injury.

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network
reported the update Friday on Good Morning Football:

Thomas’ expected return after missing
the entire 2021 season with an ankle injury is a promising
development for fantasy football managers who took him in the middle
rounds of their drafts with the hope he can rediscover some of his prior
dominance.

The 29-year-old former Ohio State
standout was an absolute force across his first four seasons after
the Saints selected him in the second round of the 2016 draft.

Here’s a look at his year-by-year
production during that span:

• 2016: 92 catches for 1,137 yards and 9 TDs
• 2017: 104 catches for 1,245 yards and 5 TDs
• 2018: 125 catches for 1,405 yards and 9 TDs
• 2019: 149 catches (NFL record) for 1,725 yards and 9 TDs

It doesn’t get much better than that
from a fantasy perspective. The combination of high-end production
and week-to-week consistency made him a manager’s dream No. 1
receiver.

He suffered an ankle injury in Week 1
of the 2020 season, however, and it lingered throughout the campaign
as he tallied no touchdowns across seven appearances. He underwent
surgery during the subsequent offseason before missing the entirety
of 2021.

The hype about Thomas’ return was dampened
by the hamstring injury, but it sounds like he’s made enough progress
to give it a go on Sunday.

Now the question is whether the 2019
NFL Offensive Player of the Year will ever return to the level he
showcased early in his career.

Not only is he three years removed
from his last monster statistical output, but quarterback Drew Brees is no longer
leading the Saints’ offense as he did in Thomas’ best seasons.

In addition, the star wideout now has
ample competition for targets from Jameis Winston with Jarvis Landry,
Chris Olave and Marquez Callaway all likely to have roles in the
weekly game plan. Running back Alvin Kamara is also a key factor in
the passing game.

So will Thomas ever rack up 185 targets
again as he did in 2019? Probably not. But that doesn’t mean he
can’t carry solid fantasy value.

Consider him a low-end No. 2 or
high-end No. 3 fantasy receiver to open the season, but a healthy
Thomas could find himself back in the No. 1 conversation by year’s
end.