Michael Thomas Injury Update Solidifies Fantasy Outlook as Worthy Starter in Week 1

Fantasy football managers went into their draft nights feeling optimistic about the healthy return of Saints' wideout Michael Thomas in 2022. He hadn't played football in more than a year thanks to an ankle issue, but finished his last full fantasy football season as the top-scoring wideout.

As with any player coming off a major injury, there are understandable fears about possible re-aggravation of that injury or dealing with any new issues. That's exactly what happened with Thomas when a concerning report arose around a hamstring issue in training camp.

Fear not, fantasy managers. Saints insider Jeff Duncan recently provided some positive news on Thomas' hamstring, suggests the wideout is already past his small hamstring troubles, indicating he "will be surprised if he's not in the starting lineup" in Week 1.

Michael Thomas Injury Update

This does wonders for his fantasy outlook heading into Week 1, providing managers a reliable WR2 or FLEX option.

Michael Thomas Fantasy Outlook

Thomas enters this Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons as WR22, according to Fantasy Pros' PPR rankings. That's right in line with his preseason rankings, coming it at WR24 in The Duel's PPR rankings for 2022.

There's a lot to like about facing this Falcons' secondary in Week 1. Atlanta had one of the most porous passing defenses in 2021, ranking 29th in Football Outsiders' pass-defense DVOA and allowing 232.5 yards per game (15th).

Atlanta did upgrade their cornerback group with the addition of Casey Hayward, but the group lacks experience and skill at every other position. Haywards' CB counterpart A.J. Terrell enters just his third NFL season while the safeties Jaylinn Hawkins and Richie Grant rated terribly on PFF (sub-60.0).

This will be Thomas' first action with Jameis Winston under center, but there's no reason to expect him not to command the target share. He's the most talented pass-catcher on this roster (above Jarvis Landry and rookie Chris Olave) and commanded more than 33% of the team's target share in his last healthy action.

New users earn an instant FREE entry when you sign up for FanDuel DFS! Sign Up Now!

Adam Taylor McKillop is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Adam Taylor also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username atmckillop. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.