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Michael Thomas Becomes First Non-QB To Get $100 Million Contract
Saints receiver Michael Thomas is ending his holdout and signing a lucrative new contract after the two sides agreed to a five-year, $100 million contract extension, per a source informed of the deal. The deal includes $61 million in guarantees, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Profootballtalk.com reports that Thomas gets a $20 million signing bonus and $32.6 million through 2020.

He becomes the first non-QB offensive player to garner a $100 million contract. The 26-year-old also now sits atop the WR market, surpassing Odell Beckham's $18 million-per-year average.

Thomas is heading into the fourth and final year of his rookie contract and was holding out for a big pay increase. There was little doubt that he deserves it.

As Fansided.com's Roy Anderson recently noted, Thomas just keeps getting better.

"Each year has improved on the last." Anderson wrote. "In the first year 1,137 yards, second 1,205 and last year 1,405. That last mark set the Saints' franchise record for receiving yards in a season."

Along the way, Thomas blew past the NFL record for the most receptions in the first three years of a player's career and led the league last year with 125 catches. He is the unquestioned No. 1 receiver for one of the most prolific offenses in football. But more than that, he's pretty much the only Saints' wideout of consequence at this point.

Last season, the rest of the team's wide-receiving corps, six players in all, combined for 1,116 yards.

As far as a "safe" No. 1 fantasy receiver goes, it doesn't get any safer than Thomas, who plays alongside Drew Brees, a future Hall of Famer, at quarterback.

If there's a concern, it lies in the fact that last year was the first time in a decade Brees didn't top 500 attempts or surpass 4,000 yards. As CBSSports.com put it, "Thomas was successful despite the team's low pass total, but any further shrinkage in [Saints'] pass attempts is likely to come at his expense."

Still, it's hard to envision him as anything but a top-five fantasy player at his position.

One last note here. ... Thomas is the first player holding out -- a list that includes Ezekiel Elliott, Melvin Gordon, Yannick Ngakoue and Trent Williams -- to earn a big, long-term extension.