Michael Thomas' 2022 season is likely finished.
The New Orleans Saints receiver is set to undergo surgery on his injured toe and will be placed on injured reserve, head coach Dennis Allen announced Thursday. Allen said he was uncertain of Thomas' timetable for return, but doesn't expect him back this season.
2022 began as Thomas' first season of significance since dealing with recurring injury issues that robbed him of more than half of 2020 and all of 2021. He got off to a strong start, catching 16 passes for 171 yards and three touchdowns in his first three games, but injuries again became a problem, forcing him out of action in every contest since Week 3.
Thursday's news means 2022 will finish as yet another injury-hindered campaign for the receiver, who set the single-season receptions record in 2019 and caught 470 passes for 5,512 yards and 32 touchdowns over his first four professional seasons. Instead of carrying this momentum into his late 20s, Thomas, 29, has instead spent most of the last three years attempting to recover and rehabilitate ailments.
Thomas still has two years left on his five-year, $96.25 million contract extension signed in July of 2019. It's a familiar position for the Saints, who have been forced to turn to other pass-catching options for the majority of the last three seasons and will have to do so once again.
