The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas

AsylumGuido · 03-11-2024, 08:09 AM

Originally Posted by leilung

You sound like you're OK with the "if I can get paid for not working, why not". In the old school military, we called that being a Blue Falcon!

I once had an excellent career with an awesome benefits package. One of the benefits was 'unlimited paid sick leave'. Most of my colleagues recognized how blessed we were to have that safety net and used it sparingly. But then there were always those few co-workers who had the attitude that they would work that benefit like a $10 Hoe! These guys would 'sick out' for any malady (real or imagined) more than everyone else in our unit COMBINED. As a result, the rest of the Squad worked harder to make up for the slack of someone who was just collecting a check on Easy St., just because he could!

I've been told that players in the NFL, are always playing with a certain degree of pain. Some are more frail than others I guess. Work ethic matters. So does availability. Some will bang out with a hang nail. Some will soldier through because they know the team needs them. By my math, 20 games played, out of a possible 67 over the last 4 years is sub .300 balling. Sorry availability for a WR in the NFL! If he's that frail, then perhaps he should try his hand in Drew's Pickleball League.

To be clear, I have been a HUGE MT fan since his rookie year and still feel like he has some of the best hands in the league. But his singular lack of presence (with the exception of his Twitter feed) is a disservice to the team and a roster spot best used on a healthy WR that will help this team win!

I wish him luck with whomever (Denver?) picks him up. He's just not a reliable asset for the Saints. Moving on...

Where did I ever say I was okay with getting paid for not working when a person is fully capable of working? Huh? I don't believe I have ever said that. But I do fully believe in contract law and if a person is physically unable to work and their contract states that they are to receive compensation while nonetheless unable to work then, yes, by all means I have no issue with that at all. Especially when they are working through a recovery from a work related injury.

The injuries that Thomas suffered were debilitating. First an ankle that ultimately required surgery including hardware. His body rejected the hardware and a second surgery was required. That is nothing that any player could play through. When he finally returned and balled out he suffered the toe injury. Some idiots claim, "Geez, it's only a toe. He should be playing." It was reportedly a complete dislocation which damaged ligaments and tendons and required yet another surgery which, in turn, required yet another extended recovery. At no point was Thomas ever sitting out collecting a check when he was able to play. In fact, there were performance based incentives that he obviously wasn't receiving.

mapcow · 03-11-2024, 10:17 AM

Originally Posted by AsylumGuido

Where did I ever say I was okay with getting paid for not working when a person is fully capable of working? Huh? I don't believe I have ever said that. But I do fully believe in contract law and if a person is physically unable to work and their contract states that they are to receive compensation while nonetheless unable to work then, yes, by all means I have no issue with that at all. Especially when they are working through a recovery from a work related injury.

The injuries that Thomas suffered were debilitating. First an ankle that ultimately required surgery including hardware. His body rejected the hardware and a second surgery was required. That is nothing that any player could play through. When he finally returned and balled out he suffered the toe injury. Some idiots claim, "Geez, it's only a toe. He should be playing." It was reportedly a complete dislocation which damaged ligaments and tendons and required yet another surgery which, in turn, required yet another extended recovery. At no point was Thomas ever sitting out collecting a check when he was able to play. In fact, there were performance based incentives that he obviously wasn't receiving.

Geez...it was only his toe! He sure did look like he could play for a couple games. If it were that bad, I would imagine he could not put pressure on it at all.

B_Dub_Saint · 03-15-2024, 08:02 AM

Word on the street... the FailClowns tamped up MT around the same time as Cousins. This could be Joe Horn 2.0. Just what I'm hearing inside the building.

SmashMouth · 03-15-2024, 08:05 AM

Originally Posted by B_Dub_Saint

Word on the street... the FailClowns tamped up MT around the same time as Cousins. This could be Joe Horn 2.0. Just what I'm hearing inside the building.

We wish MT well, despite his fleecing the Saints the last few years. We thank him for his contribution when he was productive.

AsylumGuido · 03-15-2024, 09:10 AM

Originally Posted by SmashMouth

We wish MT well, despite his fleecing the Saints the last few years. We thank him for his contribution when he was productive.

"Fleecing" implies something intentional. Not his fault. You can't blame any player for injuries that prevent them from playing. And there isn't a player in the league that would have done anything differently concerning the contract.

In eight years his total earnings according to Spotrac was $72,520,383. That's less than $10 million per year. Total salary was $7,991,085. He only received $138,469 in incentives his entire career because of those injuries.

Disappointed? Yes. Fleeced? No.

People look back at that five year $96.25 million contract extension from back in July of 2019 thinking that it seemed so huge. He never received anywhere near that in his entire career with the Saints.

saintsfan1976 · 03-15-2024, 09:44 AM

Shame. Unfortunate injuries marred an otherwise stellar career.

Then all the reports and social media / social justice left many soured on the relationship.

For me, glad it seems to finally be over.

iceshack149 · 03-15-2024, 06:26 PM

Good-bye Mike. Thanks for the good stuff.

Guido, he's not your friend and never will be. His behavior over the last four years rubbed most of us the wrong way. Glad he was effective for the first part of his career but hated him taking to social media to punk out New Orleans favorite son.

AsylumGuido · 03-15-2024, 06:54 PM

Originally Posted by iceshack149

Good-bye Mike. Thanks for the good stuff.

Guido, he's not your friend and never will be. His behavior over the last four years rubbed most of us the wrong way. Glad he was effective for the first part of his career but hated him taking to social media to punk out New Orleans favorite son.

Did I ever claim he was my friend? I'm just not as petty as most around here and respect him far, far more than those same "most". His supposed "behavior over the last four years" has mainly been generated by the social media public. It all started by idiots being pissed off because he was injured soon after the new contract. The guy barely shared anything publicly for the first two or three years after that. Here in the last year or so he's become far more visible and for that I don't blame him. The uncalled for **** he's caught has been ridiculous.

He questioned Brees that one time and soon after got together with Brees and all was cool. Hating on him for that one isolated incident is a you problem.

iceshack149 · 03-15-2024, 07:07 PM

Originally Posted by AsylumGuido

Did I ever claim he was my friend? I'm just not as petty as most around here and respect him far, far more than those same "most". His supposed "behavior over the last four years" has mainly been generated by the social media public. It all started by idiots being pissed off because he was injured soon after the new contract. The guy barely shared anything publicly for the first two or three years after that. Here in the last year or so he's become far more visible and for that I don't blame him. The uncalled for **** he's caught has been ridiculous.

He questioned Brees that one time and soon after got together with Brees and all was cool. Hating on him for that one isolated incident is a you problem.

You keep using that word...
I don't hate anyone. If you read my post you'd see that it's more than just his keyboard warrior-ing against Brees.

AsylumGuido · 03-15-2024, 07:15 PM

Originally Posted by iceshack149

You keep using that word...
I don't hate anyone. If you read my post you'd see that it's more than just his keyboard warrior-ing against Brees.

And if you read my post you'd remember it was ONE isolated post questioning Brees' understanding. Not attacking. Not "warrior-ing".

Damn, man. Get over it. They did. Why can't you?

So the hating is on more than that? What else do you hate him for?

Edit: Okay. Not hate. Why is it that you dislike him so much? Is it because he got a contract that has since been dwarfed? Is it because he got injured and couldn't play by no fault of his own?

03-11-2024, 08:09 AM	#51
AsylumGuido 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bossier City, LA Posts: 24,394	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by leilung You sound like you're OK with the "if I can get paid for not working, why not". In the old school military, we called that being a Blue Falcon! I once had an excellent career with an awesome benefits package. One of the benefits was 'unlimited paid sick leave'. Most of my colleagues recognized how blessed we were to have that safety net and used it sparingly. But then there were always those few co-workers who had the attitude that they would work that benefit like a $10 Hoe! These guys would 'sick out' for any malady (real or imagined) more than everyone else in our unit COMBINED. As a result, the rest of the Squad worked harder to make up for the slack of someone who was just collecting a check on Easy St., just because he could! I've been told that players in the NFL, are always playing with a certain degree of pain. Some are more frail than others I guess. Work ethic matters. So does availability. Some will bang out with a hang nail. Some will soldier through because they know the team needs them. By my math, 20 games played, out of a possible 67 over the last 4 years is sub .300 balling. Sorry availability for a WR in the NFL! If he's that frail, then perhaps he should try his hand in Drew's Pickleball League. To be clear, I have been a HUGE MT fan since his rookie year and still feel like he has some of the best hands in the league. But his singular lack of presence (with the exception of his Twitter feed) is a disservice to the team and a roster spot best used on a healthy WR that will help this team win! I wish him luck with whomever (Denver?) picks him up. He's just not a reliable asset for the Saints. Moving on... Where did I ever say I was okay with getting paid for not working when a person is fully capable of working? Huh? I don't believe I have ever said that. But I do fully believe in contract law and if a person is physically unable to work and their contract states that they are to receive compensation while nonetheless unable to work then, yes, by all means I have no issue with that at all. Especially when they are working through a recovery from a work related injury. The injuries that Thomas suffered were debilitating. First an ankle that ultimately required surgery including hardware. His body rejected the hardware and a second surgery was required. That is nothing that any player could play through. When he finally returned and balled out he suffered the toe injury. Some idiots claim, "Geez, it's only a toe. He should be playing." It was reportedly a complete dislocation which damaged ligaments and tendons and required yet another surgery which, in turn, required yet another extended recovery. At no point was Thomas ever sitting out collecting a check when he was able to play. In fact, there were performance based incentives that he obviously wasn't receiving.
	“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill

03-11-2024, 10:17 AM	#52
mapcow Just a Fan Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 1,334	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by AsylumGuido Where did I ever say I was okay with getting paid for not working when a person is fully capable of working? Huh? I don't believe I have ever said that. But I do fully believe in contract law and if a person is physically unable to work and their contract states that they are to receive compensation while nonetheless unable to work then, yes, by all means I have no issue with that at all. Especially when they are working through a recovery from a work related injury. The injuries that Thomas suffered were debilitating. First an ankle that ultimately required surgery including hardware. His body rejected the hardware and a second surgery was required. That is nothing that any player could play through. When he finally returned and balled out he suffered the toe injury. Some idiots claim, "Geez, it's only a toe. He should be playing." It was reportedly a complete dislocation which damaged ligaments and tendons and required yet another surgery which, in turn, required yet another extended recovery. At no point was Thomas ever sitting out collecting a check when he was able to play. In fact, there were performance based incentives that he obviously wasn't receiving. Geez...it was only his toe! He sure did look like he could play for a couple games. If it were that bad, I would imagine he could not put pressure on it at all.
mapcow Just a Fan Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 1,334

03-15-2024, 08:02 AM	#53
B_Dub_Saint 1000 Posts + Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Lafayette, LA Posts: 2,345 Blog Entries: 1	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Word on the street... the FailClowns tamped up MT around the same time as Cousins. This could be Joe Horn 2.0. Just what I'm hearing inside the building. SmashMouth likes this.

03-15-2024, 08:05 AM	#54
SmashMouth I donated, did you? Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mandeville, LA Posts: 37,016 Blog Entries: 29	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by B_Dub_Saint Word on the street... the FailClowns tamped up MT around the same time as Cousins. This could be Joe Horn 2.0. Just what I'm hearing inside the building. We wish MT well, despite his fleecing the Saints the last few years. We thank him for his contribution when he was productive. B_Dub_Saint likes this.

03-15-2024, 09:10 AM	#55
AsylumGuido 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bossier City, LA Posts: 24,394	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by SmashMouth We wish MT well, despite his fleecing the Saints the last few years. We thank him for his contribution when he was productive. "Fleecing" implies something intentional. Not his fault. You can't blame any player for injuries that prevent them from playing. And there isn't a player in the league that would have done anything differently concerning the contract. In eight years his total earnings according to Spotrac was $72,520,383. That's less than $10 million per year. Total salary was $7,991,085. He only received $138,469 in incentives his entire career because of those injuries. Disappointed? Yes. Fleeced? No. People look back at that five year $96.25 million contract extension from back in July of 2019 thinking that it seemed so huge. He never received anywhere near that in his entire career with the Saints. rezburna likes this.
	“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill

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03-15-2024, 09:44 AM	#56
saintsfan1976 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Atlanta Posts: 10,539 Blog Entries: 3	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Shame. Unfortunate injuries marred an otherwise stellar career. Then all the reports and social media / social justice left many soured on the relationship. For me, glad it seems to finally be over. iceshack149, B_Dub_Saint and K Major like this.

03-15-2024, 06:26 PM	#57
iceshack149 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 4,093 Blog Entries: 1	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Good-bye Mike. Thanks for the good stuff. Guido, he's not your friend and never will be. His behavior over the last four years rubbed most of us the wrong way. Glad he was effective for the first part of his career but hated him taking to social media to punk out New Orleans favorite son.

03-15-2024, 06:54 PM	#58
AsylumGuido 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bossier City, LA Posts: 24,394	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by iceshack149 Good-bye Mike. Thanks for the good stuff. Guido, he's not your friend and never will be. His behavior over the last four years rubbed most of us the wrong way. Glad he was effective for the first part of his career but hated him taking to social media to punk out New Orleans favorite son. Did I ever claim he was my friend? I'm just not as petty as most around here and respect him far, far more than those same "most". His supposed "behavior over the last four years" has mainly been generated by the social media public. It all started by idiots being pissed off because he was injured soon after the new contract. The guy barely shared anything publicly for the first two or three years after that. Here in the last year or so he's become far more visible and for that I don't blame him. The uncalled for **** he's caught has been ridiculous. He questioned Brees that one time and soon after got together with Brees and all was cool. Hating on him for that one isolated incident is a you problem.
	“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill

03-15-2024, 07:07 PM	#59
iceshack149 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 4,093 Blog Entries: 1	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by AsylumGuido Did I ever claim he was my friend? I'm just not as petty as most around here and respect him far, far more than those same "most". His supposed "behavior over the last four years" has mainly been generated by the social media public. It all started by idiots being pissed off because he was injured soon after the new contract. The guy barely shared anything publicly for the first two or three years after that. Here in the last year or so he's become far more visible and for that I don't blame him. The uncalled for ** he's caught has been ridiculous. He questioned Brees that one time and soon after got together with Brees and all was cool. Hating on him for that one isolated incident is a you problem**. You keep using that word... I don't hate anyone. If you read my post you'd see that it's more than just his keyboard warrior-ing against Brees.

03-15-2024, 07:15 PM	#60
AsylumGuido 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bossier City, LA Posts: 24,394	Re: The Saints are parting ways with Michael Thomas Originally Posted by iceshack149 You keep using that word... I don't hate anyone. If you read my post you'd see that it's more than just his keyboard warrior-ing against Brees. And if you read my post you'd remember it was ONE isolated post questioning Brees' understanding. Not attacking. Not "warrior-ing". Damn, man. Get over it. They did. Why can't you? So the hating is on more than that? What else do you hate him for? Edit: Okay. Not hate. Why is it that you dislike him so much? Is it because he got a contract that has since been dwarfed? Is it because he got injured and couldn't play by no fault of his own?