Giant newcomer Thomas boasts special skill set
Don’t let the perpetual smile fool you. Or the financial stability. Not even the safe roster spot.
Michael Thomas doesn’t feel like he has it made. In fact, the Giants’ newcomer will never have that mentality. That’s what not getting drafted and spending the subsequent six seasons with zero guarantees, on year-to-year contracts for the league minimum, will do to a player.
“When you go undrafted, what people said coming out of college [about you], that never leaves you,” the 28-year-old special teams ace and versatile defensive back said after Friday’s training camp practice. “That chip on your shoulder, wanting to prove yourself, wanting to prove to everybody else I can play this game at a high level and have success, that [doesn’t] leave you.”
This summer, however, is different for the former Dolphin. In late March, the Giants gave him a twoyear, $4 million contract. He’s not battling for a roster spot, but there is competition. Thomas is one of several players hoping to win the starting free safety job. Even if he’s not the guy next to All-Pro Landon Collins in the defensive backfield, Thomas will have a pivotal role on the Giants, anchoring special teams and being used in some capacity as a defensive back, whether it’s as a safety or as an extra cornerback.
“It’s not, ‘Mike, we need you here [because of injuries].’ It’s, ‘Mike, this is what you’re good at, you can help us win, let’s go,’ ” he said. “That’s why I’m excited.”
Moving around doesn’t bother Thomas. As long as he’s on the field. His versatility is what endeared him to the Giants.
“That’s been one of his trademarks,” defensive backs coach Lou Anarumo, who coached Thomas in Miami, said this week.
The best example is his finest moment as a pro, late in the 2013 sea- son. Because of a rash of injuries to the Dolphins’ secondary, Thomas was active against the Patriots and Tom Brady. He was unlikely to play, and hadn’t practiced with the defense at all. But late in the game, with the Patriots driving for the winning score, he was sent in to play the slot. Thomas ended up with the game-saving interception in the end zone that kept the Dolphins’ playoff hopes alive.
“I knew the situation, I knew this was my shot. ... I got to make a play,” he recalled.
He has done plenty of that on special teams. Since 2014, he leads the NFL in special teams tackles with 54. He was the 2017 Pro Football Focus Special Teams Player of the Year. Without his special teams skills, he likely wouldn’t still be in the NFL. But he made himself into an elite special teams performer when he joined the 49ers out of college, knowing that’s the only way he would stick. His goal was to be a “game-changer.”
The 5-foot-10, 196-pound Thomas never stopped grinning or excitedly talking about the upcoming season. That, however, wasn’t for show. His infectious personality quickly has rubbed off on teammates, to the point that he already is being described as a leader in the second week of his first training camp with the Giants. Anarumo described him as a “great human being” (Thomas was known for his work in the community while with the Dolphins) and outside linebacker Kareem Martin has been impressed by his nonstop enthusiasm.
“He’s the ultimate vet,” Martin said. “He’s always smiling and guys seem to gravitate around a guy who has a lot of energy. ... It builds other guys up. That’s what you want in a leader.”
In five seasons with the Dolphins, Thomas’ playing time fluctuated. He started 13 games at safety in 2015, but just 10 games the following two seasons. Every year, a new player was drafted or signed to replace him. Instead of getting down, he worked harder.
“You just got to be a dog,” he said.