Report: Saints have ‘little glimmer of hope’ Michael Thomas can play vs. Raiders

Don’t count him out just yet: while New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas isn’t expected to suit up for Week 2’s road game with the Las Vegas Raiders while recovering from a high-ankle sprain, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Thomas was encouraged by how his body responded to light work after Wednesday’s practice session.

Now, that’s hardly the same thing as reporting that Thomas will be cleared to play. He was listed as a non-participant in Thursday’s practice on the Saints injury report, and high-ankle sprains typically sideline players for six to eight weeks; it’s the sort of injury that is only healed by time and rest. And even if Thomas can play through the pain, it will still take time for his ankle to recover to full functionality.

The importance Thomas has to the team almost goes without saying, but let’s run through it again: he’s the best player on the squad, having caught 149 receptions for 1,725 yards (leading the NFL in each category) last season and helped keep the offense on schedule when Drew Brees was taken out of six games with a thumb injury. Missing him puts lesser players into more prominent roles, and forces Saints coach Sean Payton to reconfigure big chunks of his playbook.

And for his part, Payton refused to say one way or the other whether Thomas will play. When asked if Thomas would be ruled out, Payton declined to speak on injury situations for any players.

So we’ll believe that Thomas is going into the game when we see it. Because the Saints are playing on Monday night this week, their daily injury reports will be delayed, and we won’t learn if he’s ruled out until Saturday. It could end up coming down to the inactives list release an hour or so before kickoff. So maybe cross your fingers for good luck, but don’t hold your breath while waiting to see him return to action.