Prior to the start of training camp, it was announced that Michael Thomas underwent surgery on an ankle injury. He is expected to miss at least the first month of the new season.
The team’s medical staff advised Thomas to undergo surgery on his ankle after the 2020 season, but the veteran WR wanted a second opinion and was told the injury could heal through rest and rehab. That did not happen.
On to pof that, communication was a huge issue.
According to Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com, Thomas didn’t return the Saints’ phone calls at one point during the offseason.
“For unknown reasons, Thomas fell out of communication with the Saints. He did not return multiple calls over the next three months,” Duncan wrote, via NOLA.com. “Then-Saints trainer Beau Lowery, wide receivers coach Curtis Johnson and head coach Sean Payton all tried to reach Thomas. None of their calls were taken or returned.”
Upon returning to the team in June, Thomas’ ankle was still not right, which is why he underwent surgery soon after. He now has a 10-to-12-week rehabilitation and Duncan says the expectation is that he’ll be sidelined for the start of the regular season. Duncan writes that it was unacceptable for Thomas to not take calls from key members of the Saints and he’s lucky he wasn’t fined by the team.
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Payton admitted last week that he was disappointed by the situation.
“It’s disappointing,” Payton said. “We would have liked (the surgery) to have happened earlier rather than later. And quite honestly, it should have.”
Last season, the 28-year-old appeared in seven games for the Saints and caught 40 passes for 438 yards receiving and no touchdowns.
