The Facts: The Saints placed Thomas on injured reserve Tuesday, ending his season.
Diehards Line:The team has not yet announced Thomas' injury, though it appeared that he suffered another concussion during their last game against the Atlanta Falcons. Earlier this year, a severe concussion sidelined Thomas for five games. In Thomas' place, the Saints promoted undrafted rookie tight end Michael Higgins to the active roster. They replaced Higgins on the practice squad with Daniel Hardy Jr., a seventh round draft pick of Tampa Bay in 2011. Hardy was released by the Bucs on Sept. 3 and re-signed to their practice squad two days later. Losing Thomas for the rest of the year will hurt. Although starting tight end Jimmy Graham is the Saints' primary receiving threat at the position, Thomas is a standout blocker who helps the offensive line up front. When he was out earlier this year, veteran tight end John Gilmore and fullback Jed Collins helped fill the void, among others.