New Orleans Saints News & Rumors

A day after Mickey Loomis revealed extension conversations between the Saints and Michael Thomas had occurred, this topic is gaining steam.

Not only are the sides moving closer to a deal, but ESPN.com’s Dianna Russini reports (on Twitter) the Saints are comfortable making their top receiver the NFL’s highest-paid wideout. More than a month remains before the Saints report for training camp, and Russini adds (via Twitter) the deal is expected to be completed by that point.

Thomas’ age and numbers will set a high price tag, and due to being a second-round pick, the 26-year-old target is entering his contract year. The Saints also figure to have a clearer picture of what it will cost for them to lock up Thomas. The Falcons began Julio Jones re-up talks months ago. Those discussions ending with Jones almost certainly becoming the highest-paid wideout will raise the bar for Thomas, who has changed representation multiple times since coming into the league.

The Saints have not committed this kind of money to a wide receiver, with Jimmy Graham‘s $10MM-per-year 2014 contract representing the organization’s high-water contract given to a skill-position talent. The team is, however, comfortable with high-end receiver money. New Orleans retained Marques Colston on a five-year, $40MM deal in 2012 — his third contract with the team — and that accord came under a $120MM salary cap. Its biggest investment in a wideout occurred in 2005, via a five-year Joe Horn extension worth around $42MM (when the cap resided at $85.5MM). Saints GM since 2002, Loomis finalized both deals.

But more recently, the team passed on authorizing extensions for Kenny Stills or Brandin Cooks, trading both. Thomas has outproduced both Stills and Cooks during his three-year career and, albeit in a friendlier environment for receiving success, broke Horn’s 14-year-old franchise record for single-season receiving yardage last year.

The No. 47 pick in the 2016 draft, Thomas leads the league in receptions (321) over the past three seasons and ranks fifth in yards (3,787) since the start of the ’16 campaign. He posted 1,405 yards last season, en route to All-Pro acclaim, and holds the only two 100-plus-reception slates in the Saints’ 52-year run. The Saints hold just more than $8MM in cap space but appear ready to lock up Thomas.

A major domino in the wide receiver market will be Michael Thomas‘ second NFL contract. The Saints are in the early stages of working on that.

Saints GM Mickey Loomis confirmed, during a radio interview with Adam Schein of Mad Dog Sports Radio (audio link), the team and Thomas have engaged in discussions on his next deal. Loomis declined to get into how substantive the talks have been or whether they are ongoing, but this is a positive step for the Saints and their top wideout.

“We’ve had some conversations,” Loomis said. “We love what Mike’s done for us. He’s a fantastic player, one of the best in the league. Hopefully we can keep him a Saint for a long time.”

This is a pivotal stretch for the parties. Since Thomas was a second-round pick in 2016, he does not have the fifth-year option luxury most of his high-end receiver peers did. This represents the 26-year-old target’s contract year. Thomas is set to make just $1.15MM in base salary this season.

Considering his age and production history, Thomas can be expected to either become the NFL’s highest-paid receiver — perhaps after the Saints gain more information via their top rivals’ seemingly imminent Julio Jones deal — or close to it. Thomas has changed agents multiple times and hired his latest representation in February, so this likely represents the first of a few developments on this particular extension front.

Currently, Odell Beckham‘s $18MM-per-year agreement tops the league in terms of average annual value and fully guaranteed money ($40.9MM). Although Beckham came into the league two years before Thomas, he is only four months older. Thomas does, however, have one All-Pro showing to Beckham’s zero. Both are three years younger than Jones.

Thomas leads the league in receptions (321) over the past three seasons and ranks fifth in yards (3,787) since the start of the 2016 season. His 1,405 yards last season set a new Saints single-season record; he holds the only two 100-plus-reception seasons in the Saints’ 52-year history. The Saints hold just more than $8MM in cap space, which, per usual for this franchise, is near the bottom of the league.