Derek Carr and Michael Thomas have connected plenty this offseason, but it wasn't until Wednesday that it was brought to a competitive setting.
As he continues to fight back from injuries that cost the superstar wide receiver the better part of the past three seasons, being a full participant in training camp on Day 1 felt like a big moment. It wasn't lost on the new Saints QB.
"Oh it felt great. I think it was good for everybody … to see that and, you know, OK, everybody can take a deep breath and now we just work," Carr said. "Now we just build off of it."
On an abbreviated day of practice, Carr wasted no time sending the ball in Thomas' direction on the first play of team drills, but Paulson Adebo was up to the task and knocked it away. The next time around, no such luck, with Thomas creating ample separation and taking the ball from Carr upfield for what would've been a big gain.
It was the first of hopefully many connections between Carr and Thomas, a tandem the Saints will be hoping can help carry the team back to the playoffs for the first time since that injury- and COVID-plagued 2020 season.
"To be able to throw him a ball, I’ve been able to throw the football to a lot of guys with a lot of catches in my career, and he’s another one that’s special," Carr said. "He’s a great, great teammate and he’s worked his butt off and he’s worked really hard to get where he’s at today. The first thing I said is I’m just proud of him, all the work that he’s put in and what he’s endured and the injuries and the hardship, but he’s fought through it and he’s answered the questions and he’s done the work as we all knew he would.
"To see him out there run a route, catch a ball and get upfield for a big gain, I know that that was good for him, but it was cool for me to see, too, just out of respect for him as a person, to see that work that he’s put in."
Thomas was held out of participation for minicamp with an eye on being available for the start of camp, a more ambitious target than the 2022 season. MT was on the field for Day 1 of camp a year ago, but he was slowly ramped into the action. He did not participate in the 2021 camp at all as he worked back from an ankle injury and surgery that cost him the entire year.
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But Thomas' arrival was just one of a roster full of healthy players, a positive sign for a team that has struggled through some of the worst injury luck of any team each of the past few seasons. As head coach Dennis Allen forecasted earlier in the week, the Saints had 100 percent participation with the exception of DB Anthony Johnson, who was still seen working off to the side with trainers and appears close to a full return. Cesar Ruiz, Trevor Penning, Nick Saldiveri, A.T. Perry, Miller Forristall, Kendre Miller and Eno Benjamin, Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed were all practicing after some injury issues earlier in the offseason.
"I think that’s a step in the right direction," Allen said. Certainly I don’t think anybody has made light of how important we think Mike Thomas is to our football team and what we think he can bring to our football team. I know Mike has been working extremely hard to get himself ready. I thought he looked pretty good out there in what I was able to see. And so I think that’s a really positive step.”
The Saints had a 90-minute practice session on Wednesday, which will be ramped up throughout the week incrementally until they reach the full, 2-hour sessions. The first practice open to fans will be on Friday, with the first padded session scheduled for Monday.
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