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Michael Thomas suffered an injury prior to the New Orleans Saints' bye week. With an extra week of rest, his injury could have healed some. Heading into Week 12, fantasy football managers and fans of the team need to know what his status is.
Michael Thomas injury update
Michael Thomas is still injured following the bye week, something that has plagued him throughout his career. The talented wide receiver barely played from 2020 to 2022 with injuries, and he's going to have to deal with a knee injury for the time being.
Thomas' injury hurt the Saints, who could not come back and capture a win against the Minnesota Vikings. They may have to continue trying to win without him in the future. Head coach Dennis Allen lamented the injury via ESPN:
"It impacted some things that we were wanting to do. I thought overall, A.T. Perry came in and performed well. But I think any time you lose a guy of Mike's magnitude, it affects what you're doing."
He echoed that sentiment in the latest update:
"I think we're all on the same page in terms of where we're at."
He was officially placed on Injured Reserve, so he's going to be out for the foreseeable future.
What happened to Michael Thomas?
Michael Thomas tried to extend upwards for a pass from his quarterback on Sunday. He couldn't get to it as he was hit from behind and landed awkwardly following the collision.
That was the first offensive play of the game, and he stayed in to catch a pass on the next play before having to leave for the medical tent. He was on the sideline the rest of the game with what was considered a serious injury. At the time, it wasn't considered season-ending, and it's still not.
A sports doctor on X, formerly known as Twitter, said that the video evidence suggested a potential MCL sprain. The star wide receiver has had lower body injuries before, which could impact his recovery. It was expected to be a few weeks, and the Saints seem to believe that at least four are necessary.
From 2020 to 2022, Thomas played in just 10 regular season games. Including the Vikings game he left, he had matched that total in 2023. Unfortunately, he's not going to be able to improve that metric any time soon.
When will Michael Thomas come back?
Michael Thomas cannot be activated for at least four weeks now that he's been placed on Injured Reserve. That's the minimum amount of time before a player can return, but it often takes longer. He is officially going to be out for the matches against the Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions, Carolina Panthers and New York Giants.
He could be back for the game against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 16 or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 17, or Week 18 against Atlanta. Given how things are trending, the latter could be a game for the NFC South title.
Depending how the team plays in the next few weeks, they may fade and not bring Thomas back for meaningless games to risk another injury. Regardless, he cannot be activated until at least Week 16.
