Patriots: NE’s Jeff Thomas cut signals you liked him more than they did

It turns out Patriots fans may have liked Miami wideout Jeff Thomas more than the team’s braintrust did.

Much ink is spilled in April over “UDFA steals” who never come to be. It’s an exciting way to pass the time, and Patriots fans in dire need of good personnel news after Tom Brady’s departure may have gotten a bit too caught up at the peak of the roller coaster this spring.

Remember the “Jeff Thomas could be Antonio Brown” takes?

Apparently, the comparison has come to pass. Thomas is exactly like Brown, in that both men have now been released by the New England Patriots.

The Thomas story was an intriguing one, but it was immediately clear why the shifty former Hurricane wasn’t drafted: behavioral problems, and inconsistent production, at best.

Mark Richt dismissed Thomas from the team in late 2018 following friction with WR coach Ron Dugans, and the shifty wideout carried his betrayal of the team as far as signing a Letter of Intent with the Illini.

At the time, Richt summed things up thusly:

"“We have high standards for excellence, for conduct and for the commitment to team for all of the young men who wear our uniform, as we will not waver from those standards. We wish Jeff the very best as he moves forward in his journey.’’"

By 2019, however, the tenor of things had changed — Manny Diaz brought him back to the ‘Canes, but he “bounced back” with 379 yards receiving in 10 games, along with two games’ worth of suspensions.

All in all, this wasn’t a tough cut to forecast. Thomas had no preseason to play in. He was limited in every practice he appeared in but two, and was absent from many more. Gunner Olszewski got the spotlight at camp, working with Troy Brown to improve his slot ability, and absorbing Julian Edelman’s stray remaining punt return duties.

But it does serve as a bitter pill to those who bent over backwards to justify Thomas’ “steal of the century” status when the draft process wrapped up.

Even though Thomas cleared waivers on Sunday, he still didn’t make it back to the Patriots via the practice squad in the first wave of additions. That’s damning.

Sometimes, a wild card is just a wild card. Thomas had to prove an awful lot to Bill Belichick to justify his inclusion on the 53-man, and he proved very little. He may clear waivers (probably will) and could return to the practice squad, but it’s time for the rest of us to move on as swiftly as the Patriots did.

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