Stallions Lose Jordan Thomas and, AJ Thomas to the NFL

Jordan Thomas is one of the most versatile and intriguing players bouncing between the NFL and UFL hoping to stick with an NFL team. He is now one of many alternative football players to grace the Atlanta Falcons roster. This is now his second stint on an NFC South roster, ironically this is not the first time the tight end has signed with multiple teams in the same division, having been drafted by the Texans and later signing with the Colts. 

Aj Thomas is a prototypical new-age safety who could even play as a nickel linebacker at times, he is not all that different from Kyle Duggar. Thomas if he makes the roster will give the Patriots the versatility to play all over the second level of the defense, and special teams as well. He fits right in with the Patriots who have always liked hybrid-type players at safety.

Jordan Thomas Drafted, But Quickly Replaced 

Drafted in 2018 by the Houston Texans, Thomas immediately developed a role as a rookie but quickly faded out of the Texan’s offense. In 2018 he was one of three tight ends for Houston; the other two being Jordan Akins and Ryan Griffin. During the 2018 season, Houston ran a two-tight-end heavy offense and they were credited with playing all three tight ends in 14 or more games with Akins starting 6 games, Griffin starting 11, and Thomas starting 10 as a rookie. 

On this roster were several future UFL or CFL players including wide receivers Keke Coutee, Vyncint Smith, Christian Covington, Julien Davenport, Tyrell Adams, Duke Ejiofor, Mike Tyson, Jester Weah, Maurice Shakur, Amba Etta-Tawo, Davin Bellamy, Brian Peters, Jermaine Kelly, and Seantrell Henderson. Interesting to see one roster yield so many players who found life in football after or before the NFL. Thomas was no different, after spending just two seasons in Houston he would split 2020 between Arizona and New England appearing in 6 games between the two he caught just 1 pass for 3 yards and 1 touchdown. 

Over the next two seasons, he would sign futures deals with Indy, and Detroit although both times he wound up released. In 2023 he decided to turn to the XFL entering the draft. He would land with former NFL Tight End Anthony Becht’s St. Louis Battlehawks. He would end up released on March 15th after playing 1 game and seeing only 1 target. He then signed with the now-defunct Orlando Guardians going on to play in 4 games starting 2. He was targeted 16 times catching 8 passes for 148 yards and 3 touchdowns. 

After the 2023 XFL season, he was released due to a contract offer from the Carolina Panthers to play linebacker. This brought him back to his JUCO days where the 6’5 280 pound athlete saw action at tight end, offensive line, and defensive end. What is interesting is Thomas had just logged 1 tackle in the XFL. Somehow he made it onto the practice squad at his new position where he stuck until December. The Panthers believed with time to develop, the former pass-catcher turned pass-rusher could be an asset. This never came to fruition, even in preseason leaving Thomas released and turning back to the UFL for a chance to play. 

He would reunite with another 2023 Panthers cut, quarterback Matt Corral, who he would now be catching passes from rather than trying to prevent. He would play a large role on offense even though he caught just 4 passes for 75 yards. He played 144 snaps, 86 of them were blocking, and only 4 came on pass plays. Somehow despite all that, he caught more NFL attention. He has since signed with the Atlanta Falcons. I believe Thomas is uniquely setup to stick with Atlanta given the injuries that have occurred recently.

How Does Thomas Fit, and Could he Stick with Atlanta?

As far as tight ends go, Thomas is the total package, a player who can line up in the backfield, in-line, in the slot, or even out wide, he plays most special teams units, but he also, thanks to the Panthers adds depth on defense as well. That versatility could be exactly why he was signed by Atlanta. Atlanta recently placed fullback Robert Burns on the physically unable to perform list, waived tight end Tucker Fisk with an injury designation, and placed Tyler Vrabel on the reserve retired list. 

Vrabel saw time as an extra lineman lined up as a tight end last season. Burns was used in much the same way Thomas can be used, although Burns is more viable as a runner. He did see snaps in the backfield, in-line as a tight end, in the slot and out wide. Thomas could be in line to be the FB1 for Atlanta currently. With Tyler Vrabel vacating that 6th offensive lineman spot as well, Thomas could be used as a designated blocking tight end as well. Thomas’s ability to play multiple roles behind one of the most athletic receiving tight ends in the league could make him more valuable than most other depth players for Atlanta. I for one want to see Thomas utilized as an outside receiver in a stacked formation. Throw a screen pass to Kyle Pitts and let Thomas lead the way.

AJ Thomas Could Find his way onto Week 1 Depth Chart

As mentioned before, Thomas is as versatile as they come at safety. The 6’2 214 pound defensive back ran a 4.60 40-yard dash, a 7.03 3-cone drill, had a 10-foot 1-inch broad jump, a 33-inch vertical, and managed 13 reps in the bench press. He did have a 1.58 10-yard split, which is solid to say the least. In college, he played all over the field for the Western Michigan Broncos at times seeing snaps at cornerback, safety, and linebacker in the same game.

Thomas might end up settling at linebacker for the Patriots, and this would not be out of the norm for Aj. In College, he often slotted in where needed, and in 2020 he played very heavily at linebacker. In fact, over his collegiate career, he played nearly 700 snaps in the box including 344 snaps aligned at linebacker. He was even listed as a linebacker during his senior season. The reason this might end up being significant is Sione Takitaki was just placed on the Physically Unable to Perform list, while the Patriots also released Jontrey Hunter another coverage-type player who grew into a role at linebacker.

During the 2024 season with Birmingham, we saw Thomas play in 423 defensive snaps. This included 82 snaps in the box, including 41 as a linebacker, and 41 as a strong safety. He also played 36 snaps at nickelback, and 2 snaps out wide at cornerback.

Thomas played on every unit except the Field Goal/PAT unit on special teams. This included punt return and coverage, kickoff return and coverage, and a few snaps attempting to block kicks. His value to the Patriots is likely improved immensely due to his play on special teams. He has proven to be a very valuable special teams contributor since early in college, and he never stopped. With Birmingham, he played fairly well grading out at 70 overall. During his time in the NFL, he managed a 68.7 in 2022, and a 62.9 in limited snaps in 2023. In college it was more of the same, he was simply a playmaker no matter where you needed him. I expect that to be the case in 2024 with the Patriots as well.