As we gear up to the start of the NFL season, Football Absurdity is going to bring you a comprehensive breakdown of every notable player that will be available in fantasy football drafts. We only look at the past three seasons for a player. This is because anyone who is looking at data from 2016 to figure out what to do in 2020 had better be Jennifer Aniston celebrating the anniversary of Brangelina’s divorce. Michael Thomas told Marvin Harrison to hold his beer in 2019, so exactly how does one evaluate a talent like that for 2020?
Michael Thomas ADP and AAV:
Standard: WR1, 7 overall
PPR: WR1, 4 overall
Michael Thomas Average Auction Value: $57
Michael Thomas Statistics:
| Year | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| G | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| GS | 15 | 16 | 14 |
| Tgt | 185 | 147 | 149 |
| Rec | 149 | 125 | 104 |
| Yards | 1725 | 1405 | 1245 |
| TD | 9 | 9 | 5 |
| Tgt/G | 11.56 | 9.19 | 9.31 |
| Rec/G | 9.31 | 7.81 | 6.50 |
| Rec% | 80.5% | 85.0% | 69.8% |
| Yds/Tgt | 9.32 | 9.56 | 8.36 |
| Yds/Rec | 11.58 | 11.24 | 11.97 |
| Year | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Std Pts | 225.6 | 190.5 | 154.5 |
| HPPR Pts | 300.1 | 253 | 206.5 |
| PPR Pts | 374.6 | 315.5 | 258.5 |
| Pts/G | 14.1 | 11.9 | 9.7 |
| HPPR Pts/G | 18.8 | 15.8 | 12.9 |
| PPR Pts/G | 23.4 | 19.7 | 16.2 |
| Pts/Tgt | 1.22 | 1.30 | 1.04 |
| Pts/Tgt (HPPR) | 1.62 | 1.72 | 1.39 |
| Pts/Tgt (PPR) | 2.02 | 2.15 | 1.73 |
| Year | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
| Air Yards | 1488 | 1135 | 1424 |
| aDOT | 8 | 7.8 | 9.6 |
| YAC | 583 | 470 | 425 |
| YAC/Tgt | 3.15 | 3.22 | 2.85 |
| YAC/Rec | 3.91 | 3.82 | 4.09 |
| YAC% | 33.8% | 35.6% | 34.1% |
| AYMS | 40% | 30% | 42% |
| Tgt MS | 32% | 29% | 28% |
Michael Thomas Overview:
Michael Thomas has had three straight years as a top-six fantasy football wide receiver, a streak the makes us recall shades of… shades of… shades of black, I guess because there hasn’t been anyone as consistent as Thomas. That’s why he has the highest ADP of any wide receiver in history (source: My memory, it’s an iron cage! Not the rusted kind, either!). New Orleans has shifted to a ground-based attack over the past few years, which has somehow resulted in insane fantasy football performances from Michael Thomas. I don’t get it, you don’t get it, Drew Brees is clueless (and also doesn’t know why Michael Thomas is so good).
There’s a reason for Thomas’ ADP and it isn’t just his consistency, it’s his ceiling. He posted 149 catches (the most ever) and the seventh-most receiving yards ever last season. He also has room to grow as a fantasy football asset: his nine touchdowns are JulioJonesian levels of too low for his receptions and receiving yards.
Michael Thomas Draft Strategy:
Michael Thomas Auction Value: $65
Draft Ranking: Find out for your league settings in a Beersheet! (coming late June)
Just get Michael Thomas. If you’re in love with him like I am, then fight me! At the auction table! By bidding more money than me! Or at the draft table! By… getting the higher pick I guess; snake drafts are kind of a Gandhi Game. You know, a game where you find no resistance to your aggression.
Best Case Scenario:
You get Michael Thomas. You win fantasy football games. Because of this, you experience heights of joy so great that you discover an emotion no one else has. This emotion is named “Michaelia.”
Worst Case Scenario:
You get Michael Thomas. You win fantasy football games. Because of this, you experience heights of joy so great that you discover an emotion no one else has. The offseason comes. You become obsessed with chasing that high. Roaming the mean streets, you are turned onto a new substance called “Glitter.” The addiction comes, then the desperation, then the crash. You enter rehab and get your life back on track in time for the 2021 season (hey, I’m dark, but I’m not a monster.)
[Statistics are sourced from pro-football-reference.com and airyards.com]
