Former Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas of Montrose, Georgia passed away on Thursday at the age of 33 according to Jeff Legwold of ESPN. The four-time Pro Bowler who won the Super Bowl with the Patriots in 2016, died in the shower after having an issue with cardiac arrest according to TMZ Sports.
Thomas spent 10 seasons in the National Football League with the Denver Broncos, Houston Texans and New York Jets. He had 724 catches for 9763 yards, and 63 touchdowns.
You could make the argument that Thomas was the best wide receiver in the NFL over the five year time period from 2012 to 2016. From 2012 to 2015, he was Peyton Manning’s go-to receiver. In 80 games from 2012 to 2016, Thomas reached the 1000-yard plateau each year, and had a career-high 111 catches in 2014, 1619 yards in 2014, and 14 touchdown catches in 2013.
Thomas was also a fantasy favourite for many fantasy football owners. My best fantasy football story about Thomas came on the opening night of the 2013 NFL season in a game between the Broncos and the Baltimore Ravens. I was at a local pub, and saw that a Thomas on the Broncos caught two second quarter touchdown passes from Peyton Manning. Having Demaryius Thomas in my fantasy pool, I was completely stoked. I was hooting and hollering in the fine establishment, when my buddy got a phone call from another close friend of mine. It apparently was not Demaryius Thomas who caught the two touchdown passes from Manning, but it was tight end Julius Thomas. What amazed me is that Demaryius and Julius did not have an initial on the back of their jerseys to differentiate themselves.
I went silent for about an hour. Then Demaryius Thomas had a monster fourth quarter as he had touchdown catches of 26 and 78 yards in a 49-27 Denver win. It was a night I will simply never forget. R.I.P. Demaryius. Thankyou for the fantasy football memory!
