NFL Analysis Network

Lions Predicted To Trade For Saints WR Michael Thomas In Offseason

The Detroit Lions finished the 2021 season with a record of 3-13-1 as they embarked on a rebuild with a new regime in place. Brad Holmes took over as general manager and Dan Campbell was hired to be the new head coach to oversee the latest rebuild in the Motor City.

While the team experienced plenty of losing, there were some positives to take away from the season. Detroit was competitive more often than not, which is all you can ask for from a team that is overmatched virtually every week from a talent standpoint.

The Lions had six losses by eight points or fewer in 2021. With a few breaks going their way, they could have won six or seven games. That will be the next step they look to take in 2022 in the second year under Holmes and Campbell.

This offseason will be an important one for the Lions. They still have plenty of work to do when it comes to upgrading the roster, but the biggest needs are clear. Among them, they need to get help at wide receiver.

Detroit signed Tyrell Williams and Breshad Perriman to be their top two wide receivers last offseason and they got virtually nothing from them. Williams played in one game, while Perriman was cut before the regular season.

Whether it is Jared Goff or someone else under center for the Lions in 2022, they need better weapons to throw the ball to. Detroit has one keeper at the position in 2021 fourth-round pick Amon-Ra St. Brown. But, beyond him, there isn’t much to get excited about.

Over at Yardbarker, they made some predictions for the 2022 offseason. One of them was the Lions landing an impact wide receiver, as the bold prediction was that Detroit would acquire Michael Thomas from the New Orleans Saints.

Thomas would be a huge upgrade for the Lions, who would vault atop the pecking order for the Lions in the passing game. With St. Brown able to move into a No. 2 role and the team still has T.J. Hockenson at tight end and DeAndre Swift at running back, they would have an intriguing skill position group coming together.

There are some risks to taking on Thomas, as he missed the entire 2021 season because of injuries after playing in only seven games in 2020. But, when healthy, he is one of the premier wide receivers in the NFL. The last time he was healthy in 2019, he set an NFL record with 149 receptions, which he turned into an NFL-high 1,725 yards with nine touchdowns.

Campbell has experience with Thomas from when he was on Sean Payton‘s staff with the Saints. With New Orleans in cap hell and with a new head coach, they could look to move on from Thomas this offseason to save some money.

If they put him on the block, it would make sense for the Lions to pursue him. It shouldn’t cost nearly as much as people would think given his injury concerns the last two seasons.

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