New Orleans Saints

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas won't play Monday night against the Las Vegas Raiders because of an ankle injury suffered in Week 1, per Dan Graziano of ESPN. 

Thomas, 27, has snagged three passes for 17 yards this season.

The former Ohio State star suffered the high-ankle sprain in a 34-23 Week 1 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Thomas missed just one game in his first four seasons, a 16-11 loss to the Buccaneers on Dec. 11, 2016, sitting with a foot injury.

The star has been a second-round draft steal since New Orleans took him 47th in 2016. The three-time Pro Bowler, two-time first-team All-Pro and 2019 NFL Offensive Player of the Year caught 470 passes for 5,512 yards and 32 touchdowns over his first four seasons.

He led the NFL in receptions in 2018 and 2019 and set the league record for catches in a single season with 149 in 2019. Thomas also paced all players with 1,725 receiving yards last year.

Without Thomas, expect the team to rely more on No. 2 wideout Emmanuel Sanders and tight end Jared Cook. Running back Alvin Kamara could be utilized more in the passing game as well, as could wide receivers Tre'Quan Smith and Deonte Harris.

Thomas is a huge loss, especially considering that he absorbs a massive amount of passing volume (averaged 150.5 targets over his first four seasons). But the team has enough talent elsewhere to get by until he returns.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders provided some details Wednesday regarding quarterback Drew Brees' apology after saying in June he disagreed with kneeling during the national anthem.

During an appearance on ESPN's First Take (h/t TMZ Sports), Sanders said that Brees cried while apologizing: "As he talked, the more and more he talked, you just see a guy with just tears rolling down his face. I mean, I've never seen that. You could just tell that he was hurt by his comments and the things that people were saying about him because he was unaware of it."

Brees apologized after his comments in an interview with Yahoo Finance's Daniel Roberts. When Brees was asked about kneeling during the anthem, he said at the time that he wouldn't support anything that disrespects the flag:

The veteran signal-caller received plenty of backlash, including some from his teammates like safety Malcolm Jenkins. Brees quickly made a public apology on Instagram.

Brees admitted that he "completely missed the mark" by making it about the flag rather than recognizing that players knelt to protest against social injustice, racial inequality and police brutality.

With Brees having apologized both publicly and privately, Sanders expressed his belief that all is well in the Saints' locker room: "We understood where he was coming from and we were able to move past it. I don't see any weird energy going on in the locker room."

Sanders also called Brees "one of the best teammates I've been around."

New Orleans signed the 33-year-old Sanders during the offseason after he split last season between the Denver Broncos and the NFC champion San Francisco 49ers. Sanders had a modest three catches for 15 yards in the Saints' Week 1 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he had an instant connection with Brees in the red zone, as he caught a five-yard touchdown.

With Brees and his teammates seemingly on the same page, it appears all the necessary pieces could be in place for the Saints to make a Super Bowl run.

New Orleans Saints star wide receiver Michael Thomas suffered a high ankle injury during Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and will reportedly be out for a significant time.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Network said Thomas is "expected to miss several weeks."

Now in his fifth NFL season, Thomas has been a standout for the Saints and for fantasy owners. He is coming off an incredible 2019 campaign in which he tallied 149 catches and 1,725 yards—both league-leading totals—as well as nine touchdowns.

Emmanuel Sanders could get a majority of the work with Thomas out of the lineup. The veteran wideout has three seasons of more than 1,000 receiving yards.

The 33-year-old may not be fully accustomed to the new offense just yet in his first season with the Saints, but he has been a WR1 in the past and will benefit from catching passes from Drew Brees.

Jared Cook was likely already starting in fantasy circles at tight end, which is not as deep as wide receiver. All this injury to Thomas does is raise his already high ceiling after he posted 705 receiving yards and nine touchdown catches last year with New Orleans.

Don't hesitate to put Sanders and Cook in your starting lineup moving forward.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas is likely headed to the sidelines for a few weeks with an ankle injury, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport. 

The injury stems from a Week 1 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after which Thomas believed he could continue playing. Two days of attempted recovery have proven that tougher than originally thought. 

The 2016 second-round pick has been durable to start his career and missed only one game in his first four seasons in the league.

The three-time Pro Bowler is one of the best offensive weapons in the NFL and led the league in catches the last two years, as well as in receiving yards in 2019.

In fact, Thomas set the single-season receptions record last year with 149 catches for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns. It further cemented his status on the short list of best wide receivers in the NFL, and the Saints offense will sorely miss his dominant presence if he is out for significant time.

They can still turn toward Alvin Kamara on the ground and the combination of Kamara, Emmanuel Sanders and Jared Cook in the air, but the Saints are far more dangerous with Thomas lined up on the outside.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas suffered a high-ankle injury during Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, though he reportedly believes he can play through the injury. 

"With an extra day before next Monday's game vs. the Las Vegas Raiders, nobody ruling Thomas out," Pelissero added.

The Saints struck gold in the second round of the 2016 draft when they selected Thomas with the 47th overall pick.

After back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons to start his NFL career, Thomas enjoyed a monster 2018. He caught a league-high 125 passes for 1,405 yards and nine touchdowns. Football Outsiders ranked him third in DYAR (defense-adjusted yards above replacement) at the wide receiver position.

New Orleans rewarded Thomas with a five-year, $96.25 million extension in the 2019 offseason. Upon getting his pay raise, he didn't take his foot off the gas. His 149 receptions set a single-season record as he finished with 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns.

The Saints bolstered their passing game in the offseason by signing Emmanuel Sanders, and they still have Jared Cook and Alvin Kamara, both of whom were Pro Bowlers last year.

While those three will offer support for Drew Brees, any potential Thomas absence would create a massive void in the offense.

Beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers wasn't enough for New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan.

He had to get in a shot at the team's fans as well.

"It felt like we were at a Tampa Bay game," he said about the lack of fans at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome during Sunday's 34-23 win over the Buccaneers, per Katherine Terrell of The Athletic.

Winning against an NFC South foe is also business as usual for the Saints, who are looking for a fourth straight division title.

They will likely have to go through Tom Brady's Buccaneers to do it and got off to an excellent start Sunday by picking off the all-time great twice, the second of which Janoris Jenkins returned for a touchdown.

That the Saints looked like Super Bowl contenders all while Michael Thomas had 17 receiving yards and Alvin Kamara had 16 rushing yards is certainly concerning for Tampa Bay and the rest of the division.

Likely more concerning than cheap shots at Buccaneers fans.

Demario Davis will remain with the New Orleans Saints for the next few seasons after agreeing to a three-year, $27 million extension, according to Fox Sports' Erin Andrews and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Rapoport reported Davis will receive nearly $18.4 million guaranteed.

The 31-year-old has been one of the most reliable players in the NFL, making 128 straight regular-season appearances since entering the league as a third-round pick in the 2012 draft. 

He's averaged 110 tackles per year over the last seven seasons with the Saints, New York Jets and Cleveland Browns, starting all but one game in this stretch.

While his consistency has kept him in starting lineups, Davis took his game to a new level in 2019 with 111 tackles, four sacks and one interception while contributing in all phases of the game. Pro Football Focus highlighted his overall impact last season:

Per Pro Football Reference, he allowed just a 75.8 quarterback rating on 72 targets in his direction while missing just five tackles all season.

It made him a defensive anchor for a team that went 13-3 on the season, tied for the best record in the NFC.

Davis was heading into the final year of his contract, but he's now under team control for multiple years as the Saints try to remain in title contention for an extended stretch. With talented players at other levels of the defense like Cameron Jordan and Marshon Lattimore, New Orleans has several trustworthy options on that side of the ball.

Alvin Kamara is going to be with the New Orleans Saints for the long haul.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the running back has agreed to terms on a new five-year, $75 million contract. His deal includes a $15 million signing bonus. 

The Saints confirmed the agreement on Saturday afternoon: 

The 25-year-old has emerged as one of football's most dangerous weapons, with 2,408 rushing yards, 243 receptions for 2,068 yards and 37 total touchdowns in his first three seasons. He's also a three-time Pro Bowler and was the 2017 Offensive Rookie of the Year.

In Kamara, Drew Brees, Michael Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, Latavius Murray and Jared Cook, the Saints have one of the best offenses in football. Sean Payton's group has reached the postseason in three straight seasons and heads into the 2020 campaign as a Super Bowl favorite.

But Kamara's ability to have a major impact in the running and passing games makes him so difficult for opposing defenses to defend. That versatility also made him more valuable than a traditional between-the-tackles runner, and it's a skill set Christian McCaffrey also cashed in on.

It's no surprise three-down players have set the running back market in recent years, from pre-injury Todd Gurley (64 catches for 788 yards and six touchdowns in 2017) to McCaffrey.

It was only a matter of time before Kamara inked his own lucrative extension. He's far too explosive and versatile for the Saints to risk losing.

The New Orleans Saints have applied to the state of Louisiana in order to play football within the city, according to Travers Mackel of WDSU. 

The Saints are scheduled to host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards announced Wednesday it would move to Phase 3 of its protocols for reopening amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which allows for contact sports and extends the maximum group sizes, via Will Sentell of the Advocate.

However, the city of New Orleans did not follow suit with Mayor LaToya Cantrell stating Thursday the city will remain in Phase 2, with greater restrictions.

Per Mackel, this phase prevents any football from being played in New Orleans.

"The primary reason for us staying in Phase Two, not moving with further easement of any restrictions, is to get our kids back into the classroom, have the time that will allow us to look at the data, look at the trends, and therefore determine the impact," Cantrell said Thursday, via WBRZ.

This decision also affects football teams at many levels, including high school teams and Tulane University.

The state has already approved fans at games for the second home game, Week 3 against the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 27, but there may be more question marks about Week 1.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is keenly aware that his latest chance to win a Super Bowl could also be his last. 

Heading into his 20th NFL season, the 41-year-old said he feels even more free to play his game in 2020 as he searches for one more championship before retirement.

"Hey, at this time, man, I'm on borrowed time," Brees said, per ESPN's Mike Triplett. "I've got nothing to lose. So I'm turning it loose and letting the chips fall where they may."

Even if this is his final year on the field, Brees can feel comfortable knowing his post-football career is already planned out. The quarterback is reportedly being "groomed as the potential replacement for Cris Collinsworth on Sunday Night Football" after agreeing to a deal with NBC that begins once his playing days are over, per Andrew Marchand of the New York Post.

That seems far off with a new season beginning this week. And after Brees led New Orleans to 11-plus wins in each of the last three years, there's little reason to believe another dominant season isn't on the way. 

With Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara, Jared Cook and Emmanuel Sanders at his disposal, there is no shortage of explosiveness in Brees' huddle. 

"I've always used the term 'prolong your prime,'" Brees said. "At the end of the day, that's what we're trying to do. Father Time's gonna get us at some point, but we're trying to beat him out right now."

Brees passed for 2,979 yards, 27 touchdowns and four interceptions—the fewest of his career—in 11 games last year. Aside from a thumb injury early in the season, he's prolonged his prime as well as he possibly can. 

Three consecutive stunning playoff losses will do that to a future Hall of Fame quarterback.

First there was the Minneapolis Miracle, then the "No Call" debacle against the Los Angeles Rams in 2018 and finally an overtime loss in a rematch with Minnesota last year. 

Brees is ready to move on from all three and continue holding off Father Time a bit longer.  

"I know that everything happens for a reason, and in most cases, failure is your best teacher. "That's the approach I've always taken, and that's the approach this team has taken. And I feel like we've found a way to garner strength from each one of these moments over these last few years. And it's only made us better."