Demaryius Thomas was one of the big winners during a wild Wednesday in the NFL, but players around the league received some collateral benefits. That started with A.J. Green and Julio Jones, two top-tier receivers who are up for new contracts. And Green knew it.
Thomas revealed Friday at his press conference in Denver that Green was one of the first people to contact him after signing the deal. The message?
"Thank you," Green said.
Green has been publicly comfortable with playing out the final year of his contract. He's betting on himself, and with good reason. Thomas' five-year, $70 million contract is likely going to be the starting point for negotiations for Green. As great as Thomas and Dez Bryant have been in the NFL, Green has been even better.
Here were a few more takeaways from Thomas' press conference:
- Thomas spoke publicly for the first time about his mom since President Barack Obama granted commutations to 46 federal prisoners locked up for non-violent drug charges, including Thomas' mother.
"I just had two things happening in one week and it's just amazing," Thomas said.
- Thomas isn't sure when his mother will be able to watch him play. She is headed to a halfway house in Georgia in two weeks, and has never flown on a plane in her life.
- Thomas said he was confident more than a week ago that a deal would be completed. He also said he would have never skipped regular season games, just training camp.
The latest Around The NFL Podcast discusses recent news from around the league, including the new contracts for Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas.