 Thomas with the Denver Broncos in 2011 | |||||||||
| No. 80, 89 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Tight end | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (1988-06-27)June 27, 1988 (age 36) Stockton, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 262 lb (119 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Tokay(Lodi, California) | ||||||||
| College: | Portland State (2010) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2011: 4th round, 129th pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Julius Dewayne Thomas[1] (born June 27, 1988) is an American former professionalfootball player who was atight end in theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football andbasketball atPortland State, and was drafted by theDenver Broncos in the fourth round of the2011 NFL draft. He also played for theJacksonville Jaguars andMiami Dolphins.
Thomas is the son of Greg and Toria Thomas. He has two brothers, Trenton and Marcus. Thomas graduated fromTokay High School inLodi, California. Thomas graduated fromPortland State University inPortland, Oregon, with a bachelor's degree inBusiness Administration.[2][3][4][5][6]
While at Portland State, Thomas was a First-team All-Big Sky Conference selection in football in 2010. He finished the season with 29 receptions for 453 yards and two touchdowns forPortland State's football team.[7] Thomas had not played collegiate football prior to 2010.
Thomas played four seasons for thePortland State basketball team. During his collegiate basketball career, Thomas set school records for career games played (121), career wins (78), and career field goals percentage (.663),[8] and also participated on one Big Sky regular season championship team and two Big Sky tournament championship teams as well twoNCAA Tournaments (2008 and 2009). He was twice named to the Big Sky All-Tournament team. As a senior, he averaged 10.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, and shot a school-record .671 from the field.[9]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft4+5⁄8 in (1.95 m) | 246 lb (112 kg) | 33 in (0.84 m) | 10+1⁄4 in (0.26 m) | 4.68 s | 1.64 s | 2.74 s | 4.31 s | 6.96 s | 35.5 in (0.90 m) | 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) | 16 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine[10][11] | ||||||||||||
Thomas was selected in the fourth round with the 129th overall pick by theDenver Broncos in the2011 NFL draft. He was the highest selected Portland State Viking since quarterbackNeil Lomax was selected in the second round by theSt. Louis Cardinals in 1980.[12][13][14] His rookie contract was four years and $2,420,000 through the 2014 season.[15] It included a $384,000 signing bonus.
In his first NFL season, Thomas had only one catch as he battled various injuries. He appeared in five games on the season.[16] Thomas's lone catch, which came from quarterbackKyle Orton, came on September 18 against theCincinnati Bengals.[17]
Thomas did not record any statistics in the 2012 season. He only appeared in four games.[18]
Thomas erupted onto the scene in the 2013 season. He scored his first and second career touchdowns in theseason opener against theBaltimore Ravens on September 5, 2013, having a five catch, 110-yard, two-touchdown breakout performance. Both of Thomas's touchdowns came from quarterbackPeyton Manning.[19] He followed up this performance in Week 2 with a six-catch, 47-yard performance that ended with a game-sealing touchdown against theNew York Giants.[20] In Week 3, he continued his scoring streak against theOakland Raiders with three receptions for 37 yards and a touchdown.[21] Thomas played his best game of the season in Week 5, catching nine passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns in a 51–48 shootout win against theDallas Cowboys.[22] On October 13, he had four receptions for 22 yards and a touchdown against theJacksonville Jaguars.[23] On October 20, he had five receptions for 41 yards and a touchdown against theIndianapolis Colts.[24] On November 10, 2013, he had three receptions for 96 yards and a touchdown against theSan Diego Chargers.[25] In Week 16, in a win over theHouston Texans, Thomas caught a touchdown from Peyton Manning, which was his 51st touchdown pass of the season, which set a single season record.[26]
Thomas ended the season with 12 touchdown receptions, the most by any Denver Broncos tight end.[27] Thomas and the Broncos reachedSuper Bowl XLVIII, where he had four receptions for 27 yards, but lost 43–8 to theSeattle Seahawks.[28]
In the first game of the 2014 season, the Broncos hosted theIndianapolis Colts. During that game, Thomas caught three first-half touchdown passes from quarterbackPeyton Manning, tying former BroncoShannon Sharpe's franchise record for the most touchdowns by a tight end in a single season game. The Broncos went on to win the game by a score of 31–24.[29] In the next game, he had four receptions for 39 yards and a touchdown against theKansas City Chiefs.[30] In a Super Bowl XLVIII rematch in the following game, he had three receptions for 17 yards and a touchdown in an overtime loss to theSeattle Seahawks.[31] On October 5, he had six receptions for 66 yards and two touchdowns against theArizona Cardinals. His first score was Peyton Manning's 500th career touchdown pass.[32] Three days later, Thomas was fined $8,000 for achop block on Cardinalsdefensive endCalais Campbell.[33] On October 12, against theNew York Jets, he had two receptions for 44 yards and two touchdowns, which tiedCalvin Johnson's record of nine touchdowns through the first five games of a season.[34][35] On November 2, he had two receptions for 33 yards and a touchdown against theNew England Patriots.[36] On November 9, he had six receptions for 63 yards and two touchdowns against theOakland Raiders.[37]
Although his numbers in receptions and yards dropped from the previous season, Thomas recorded 12 touchdowns for the second straight season.[38]
Thomas and the Broncos made the playoffs in the 2014 season.[39] They fell to the Indianapolis Colts in theDivisional Round 24–13. Thomas had six receptions for 53 yards in the loss.[40]
On March 10, 2015, Thomas signed a five-year, $46 million contract with theJacksonville Jaguars.[41]
On October 18, Thomas had seven receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown against theHouston Texans.[42] On November 19, his five-yard touchdown catch was the game-winner in Jacksonville's 19–13 victory over theTennessee Titans.[43] On November 29, he had nine receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown against theSan Diego Chargers.[44] On December 6, he had two receptions for 15 yards and a touchdown in another game against the Titans.[45] On December 13, he had five receptions for 54 yards and a touchdown against theIndianapolis Colts.[46]
On the season, Thomas totaled 45 receptions for 455 yards and five touchdowns.[47]
Thomas started his second season in Jacksonville with five receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown against theGreen Bay Packers on September 11.[48] On October 23, he had three receptions for 20 yards and a touchdown against theOakland Raiders.[49] On October 27, he had three receptions for 28 yards and a touchdown against theTennessee Titans.[50] On November 13, he had six receptions for 24 yards and a touchdowns against theHouston Texans.[51] He was placed on injured reserve on December 10, 2016, after missing two games with a back injury.[52]
In the 2016 season, Thomas played in nine games with six starts recording 30 receptions for 281 yards and four touchdowns.[53]
The Jaguars traded Thomas to theMiami Dolphins for the 240th overall pick (Marquez Williams) in the2017 NFL draft, where he signed a new two-year contract.[54] He was placed on injured reserve on December 20, 2017.[55] He played in 14 games with 12 starts, recording 41 catches for 388 yards for three touchdowns.
On March 14, 2018, Thomas was released by the Dolphins.[56]
On August 24, 2018, Thomas announced his retirement from the NFL to pursue a doctorate in psychology.[57] He is currently studying clinical health psychology atNova Southeastern University. In addition, he joined Psychology Services Center at Nova Southeastern University in 2020[58][59] In 2019, Thomas became the player advisory board member in the Football Players health Study Department at Harvard University. Later in 2021, he joined Memorial Rehabilitation Institute, providing clinical psychology andneuropsychological services.[60][61]
In January 2022, he co-founded NESTRE Health and Performance, a neuro-strength solutions company, where he also works as chief health and performance innovation officer. As of 2024, Thomas is thevice president of the Society for Sports Neuroscience. The society works for scientists and practitioners in furthering research-based athletic performance and brain health.[62]
| Year | Team | GP | Receiving | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | |||
| 2011 | DEN | 5 | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 |
| 2012 | DEN | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | DEN | 14 | 65 | 788 | 12.1 | 74 | 12 |
| 2014 | DEN | 13 | 43 | 489 | 11.4 | 35 | 12 |
| 2015 | JAX | 12 | 46 | 455 | 9.9 | 34 | 5 |
| 2016 | JAX | 9 | 30 | 281 | 9.4 | 24 | 4 |
| 2017 | MIA | 14 | 41 | 388 | 9.5 | 27 | 3 |
| Total | 67 | 226 | 2,406 | 10.6 | 74 | 36 | |
