Charges dropped against ex-Saints WR Thomas

NEW ORLEANS — Misdemeanor charges of simple battery and criminal mischief against former New Orleans Saints receiver Michael Thomas were dismissed Wednesday, according to his attorney Daniel “Becket” Becnel.

The initial charges were related to an incident that occurred in front of Thomas’ residence in Kenner, Louisiana, on Nov. 10, 2023. Thomas got into a verbal altercation that night with a local contractor relating to parking issues in the neighborhood. The man accused Thomas of pushing him and throwing a brick at his car windshield.

“We had been working through an outcome like this with the Kenner prosecutor, exchanging videos and seeing if there was any evidence of their allegations,” Becnel told ESPN on Wednesday. “There was no evidence of injuries, medical bills. There was no evidence of property damage. The complainant alleged that there was video of an assault and there was no video. The prosecutor reviewed the matter, we made our case to him, and he agreed, and the matter was dismissed today.”

Thomas was taken into custody that night but released a few hours later. He made the trip with the team the following day to play the Minnesota Vikings, but injured his knee two plays into the game and eventually went on injured reserve, ending his season.

“There was no assault, there was no brick thrown … This was a dispute between a contractor and his employees, who were blocking his driveway and who were parking and walking on his grass,” Becnel said. “It came to a head one day, but there was no criminality involved. That’s obvious by the lack of any type of civil suit, the lack of any type of property damage, the lack of any medical issues and the lack of any physical evidence that criminal action took place.”

Thomas, a 2016 second-round pick by the Saints, was released by the team last week at the beginning of free agency after playing in 10 games in 2023.

Thomas was the 2019 NFL Offensive Player of the Year and holds the single-season receptions record after catching 149 passes that year. Ankle, toe and knee injuries limited him to 20 regular-season games between 2020 and 2023 and he missed the entire 2021 season while recovering from complications with his ankle injury.

The 31-year-old Thomas has started 72 games in his NFL career, catching 565 passes for 6,569 passes and 36 touchdowns.

“Mr. Thomas is happy to put this behind him because he has an exemplary record,” Becnel said. “He wants to move forward with his NFL career and his personal life.”