Light flipping on for Devin Thomas?
The Redskins made Devin Thomas the No. 34 overall pick in 2008 expecting him to overtake Antwaan Randle El for a starting job in his rookie season. A hamstring injury cost the former Michigan State Spartan most of training camp, however, and he was drop prone in practice and preseason games. There were also rumblings that Thomas lacked the work ethic and maturity to ever become a consistent NFL contributor. He struggled to grasp the playbook and finished his first year with 15 catches for 120 yards (8.0 YPC).
However, the light appeared to go on for Thomas at spring practices, when he exhibited improved route running and awareness in the passing game. He also underwent offseason laser surgery to improve his vision. Word broke at the start of training camp that Thomas will be installed as Washington's starting flanker, moving Antwaan Randle El into the slot.
The Bad News
Thomas' upside is limited, at least on paper. Even if Thomas keeps the starting position, he'll probably be no better than a fourth offensive option behind Clinton Portis, Santana Moss, and Chris Cooley. Thomas also still hasn't fully earned the coaching staff's trust, and Jim Zorn could reinstall Randle El outside at any time. Washington finished 2008 eighth in the NFL in rushing attempts, obviously limiting any passing production, and averaged just 16.6 points per game (28th in the league).
The Good News
Thomas has starting-caliber NFL talent. At 6'2/217, he ran 4.34 and 4.32 forty times at the 2008 Scouting Combine. He caught 79 passes for 1,260 yards (15.9 YPC) and eight touchdowns for a Spartans team whose second-leading receiver was tailback Javon Ringer (35 catches). Thomas was facing double teams and still dominating the Big Ten.
Portis is a breakdown candidate after averaging just 2.9 yards per carry in the Redskins' last five games. Portis is only 28, but has the fourth-most career carries (2,052) among active running backs. Should Portis go down, not only could Thomas become the third offensive option, his targets would likely jump because Washington would pass more. Which brings us to a third on-paper plus....
Jason Campbell enters his second year under Zorn and figures to get more freedom, even after the Skins pursued Jay Cutler and Mark Sanchez (Dan Snyder and Vinny Cerrato wanted those QBs, not Zorn). Zorn calls the plays and hails from the Mike Holmgren coaching tree, which always emphasized the passing game over running. Following the release of Jon Jansen, the Redskins' run blocking may also suffer. Replacement Stephon Heyer is an upgrade in pass protection.
We don't expect a huge second-year leap from Thomas. Thomas' current projection in the Rotoworld Draft Guide is 40 grabs for 595 yards (14.9 YPC) and three touchdowns. Still, the table is set for more. He looks like an ideal WR5 fantasy pick.
Comments
he definitely has upside as you mentioned and opportunity. He seems to be ahead of fellow 2nd year WR Malcolm Kelly and his surgically repaired knee.
Thomas is a great target in dynasty leagues, but in a re-draft he is purely a roll of the dice on your bench, which is not a bad thing at all. He may be breaking through, but he likely needs one more year of seasoning before he'll be fantasy startable.
Posted by: BeastOrBust | August 4, 2009 04:02 PM
devin thomas. yawn. devin thomas may be proof of the eternal optimism of the average fantasy footballer.
cmon, be serious. his QB is subpar, his OL is subpar, he's worse than the TE and at least one other WR if not 2, he plays in a tough division, his coach is questionable, i'm guessing his QB may be different next year and - gasp - worse than Campbell (Brennan??? seriously?). sure, anything is possible, but cmon.
i can't tell if you guys really believe the articles you write, or if you just like to say crazy stuff ("the Steelers would be a great fit for Michael Vick") and then sit back and enjoy the flurry of posts. i'm guessing the latter. you're welcome.
Posted by: veggieb | August 4, 2009 04:52 PM
Veggieb - its just good old fashion information. In a 14 team league, Thomas mightmay very well get drafted especially if the league is starting at least 3 WR. Did you also consider fantasy leagues also could be starting 4, 5, or even 6 WRs?
Posted by: Sammy | August 4, 2009 05:10 PM
Wow something got stuck up Veggiebs but.
I like the post. To me D.Thomas looks like the ideal dynasty stash and potential 3rd yr breakout candidate. I like his chances of improving enough this yr to warrent that. Yes, this yr is a lil shaky for solid value but anything can happen by next summer and ur likely to get him as a throw in in any trade.
Speaking of 3rd yr breakout wrs.. Evan when u gonna post one for T.Ginn and this year? Hes got sleeper written all over him.
Posted by: scott c | August 4, 2009 05:58 PM
Geez, veggieb, how could you POSSIBLY be overlooking leagues that start 6 WRs?
Posted by: Juggs | August 4, 2009 06:01 PM
I drafted Thomas in my dynasty league last year and its been nice seeing some good press on him this summer. I'm willing to chalk last year up to a learning experience for him and see what happens this year because the talent is there...
One other point I'd chip in is that Thomas' skill set seems more suited to Zorn's West Coast scheme than any receiver outside of the perpetually injured Kelly.
Posted by: Chad F. | August 4, 2009 08:22 PM
glad to cause a stir! Sammy, i'm actually in a 16 team league that drafts 7 WR's per team. so yeah, devin will get drafted. and i'm all in favor of the Roto guys providing information. but cmon, how slow of a news day is it when one of the few nuggets they write about is Devin Thomas! like i said, i gotta wonder if guys like Evan deliberately reach for an angle here just to get more posts from people like me who will say "no way, not him!" heck, that's what I would do if I were Silva. Evan, you really think Devin is the 2nd coming of, gosh, Percy Harvin? :-)
Posted by: veggieb | August 5, 2009 01:48 PM