Michael Thomas is on pace for his gold record to turn platinum.
The New Orleans Saints receiver once again put up massive numbers gobbling up eight of 11 targets for 114 yards and a TD in the 34-17 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Thomas' fourth-straight 100-plus yard receiving game has made his theatrics seem routine.
"Ho-hum," quarterback Drew Brees quipped when asked about Thomas' latest big game.
The most ridiculous part of Thomas' streak is that it does seem ho-hum to him. He's generated 112 yards or more in the past four games. He has at least 50 yards in every game this season. In six games out of 10, he's finished above the century mark, and three others were 89, 89 and 95 yards. Oh, and in the game he was held to just 54 yards, Thomas still scored a touchdown in a win in Seattle with the backup QB making his first start.
"Here's the thing: If you saw the guy work and you saw the guy prepare, it's just what we see every day in practice, honestly," Brees said, via The Times-Picayune. "It's one of those things that, when it's all said and done, you look back and really, really appreciate it. I just love his mindset. He is a, 'I want the ball, I will get open, I will make the play for you' kind of guy. That's the kind of guy you want."
Thomas even seems to shrug at his own exploits.
"If the ball's in the air, I'm trying to catch it," Thomas said.
And catch it he does.
After Sunday's big game, Thomas became the first player in NFL history to record 90-plus receptions in his team's first 10 games of a season, surpassing HOFer Marvin Harrison (2002) and Julio Jones (2015), who each had 89 receptions through 10 tilts. Harrison finished 2002 with 143 catches, a single-season record that Thomas is on pace to smash (on pace for 150).
Thomas also logged his 15th career game with 100-plus receiving yards, tied for most such games in a player's first four seasons since Amari Cooper.
"I'm just playing for my teammates," Thomas said. "There's only one goal; we're trying to play championship ball, and I'm trying to be accountable and do my job at a high level for my teammates. ... But it's one game at a time, it's going to take consistency, it's going to take me playing at a high level. I'm ready for the challenge to keep showing up and proving myself."
With the Saints lacking a consistent big-play No. 2 target, Brees will continue to feed Thomas down the stretch, and the wideout will continue to embody the phrase Can't Guard Mike.
