The contract negotiations for one star is now over, and that's New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas. The Saints have made him the highest-paid wide receiver with a five-year, $100 million contract extension, which was announced on Wednesday morning. The deal includes $61 million in guaranteed money, and will keep him with the Saint for the next six years, which goes through the 2024 campaign. He is the first of many stars to hopefully get a big contracts before the regular season, as Ezekiel Elliott of the Dallas Cowboys and Melvin Gordon of the Los Angeles Chargers continue their holdout to get big money from the running back position.
The 26-year-old Thomas is in the middle of a big group of receivers who are looking for new contracts, a group that includes Tyreek Hill of the Kansas City Chiefs, Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons, and Amari Cooper of the Dallas Cowboys. A.J. Green has his contract year coming up with the Cincinnati Bengals, but his ankle injury, along with Tyler Boyd's recent extension, may stop him from getting anything done with them.
Thomas's new contract gives him a 1,700% pay raise, and it is a deal that is very well-deserved. His 321 career receptions are the most by a receiver in NFL history through their first three seasons. Second on that list is Odell Beckham Jr. at 288, and he is already getting paid $18 million per season. Thomas is now the first Saints skill player to be paid more than $10 million per season, with former tight end Jimmy Graham getting paid that amount before being dealt to the Seattle Seahawks. And you can now find him with the Green Bay Packers.
The newly-paid wideout set franchise records with 125 catches for 1,405 receiving yards to go along with his nine touchdown catches. He also finished with a catch rate of 84.5% for 2018, which is the highest for any wide receiver since the 2001 campaign. He continues to be a top target of quarterback Drew Brees, as no other receiver had more than 28 catches last season, and he will continue to be that top target, just with a new contract, starting in 2019.
The 26-year-old Thomas is in the middle of a big group of receivers who are looking for new contracts, a group that includes Tyreek Hill of the Kansas City Chiefs, Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons, and Amari Cooper of the Dallas Cowboys. A.J. Green has his contract year coming up with the Cincinnati Bengals, but his ankle injury, along with Tyler Boyd's recent extension, may stop him from getting anything done with them.
Thomas's new contract gives him a 1,700% pay raise, and it is a deal that is very well-deserved. His 321 career receptions are the most by a receiver in NFL history through their first three seasons. Second on that list is Odell Beckham Jr. at 288, and he is already getting paid $18 million per season. Thomas is now the first Saints skill player to be paid more than $10 million per season, with former tight end Jimmy Graham getting paid that amount before being dealt to the Seattle Seahawks. And you can now find him with the Green Bay Packers.
The newly-paid wideout set franchise records with 125 catches for 1,405 receiving yards to go along with his nine touchdown catches. He also finished with a catch rate of 84.5% for 2018, which is the highest for any wide receiver since the 2001 campaign. He continues to be a top target of quarterback Drew Brees, as no other receiver had more than 28 catches last season, and he will continue to be that top target, just with a new contract, starting in 2019.
