The Jets made a splash on Tuesday afternoon when the team went out and acquired Demaryius Thomas from the New England Patriots.
New York sent a 2021 sixth-round pick to its arch-rivals in what marks the first trade between the two organizations since the Patriots acquired the rights to Bill Belichick. With two of the Jets’ top receivers failing to impress in their first game, Adam Gase went out and got one of his top performers while he was the offensive coordinator in Denver.
With that said, here are five things to know about the Jets’ newly-acquired wideout.
The Adam Gase Connection
Demaryius Thomas has reunited with Adam Gase.
Gase was Thomas’ first position coach in Denver before being promoted to the team’s offensive coordinator. Thomas enjoyed some of his best seasons with Gase calling plays, as he had 203 receptions for 3,049 yards and 25 touchdowns in Gase’s two seasons as the Broncos’ coordinator from 2013-14.
Family Matters
Demaryius Thomas did not have an easy road to the NFL. He was raised by his aunt and uncle since from early childhood in the state of Georgia.
When Thomas was an infant, police raided the house where his mother and grandmother lived. His mother and grandmother were arrested and sentenced to 20 years in prison and life in prison, respectively, for crack distribution.
In July 2015, President Barack Obama commuted his mother’s sentence. She saw Thomas play for the first time in the Broncos’ divisional-round win over the Steelers in the 2016 playoffs. In August 2016, President Obama then commuted his grandmother’s sentence.
From Houston to New England
On Oct. 30, 2018, the Broncos traded Demaryius Thomas and a seventh-round pick in the 2019 draft to the Houston Texans for a fourth- and a seventh-round pick in the 2019 draft.
In seven games, Thomas caught 23 passes for 275 yards and two touchdowns. Thomas subsequently tore his Achilles in a December loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
In the offseason, Thomas signed a one-year contract with the New England Patriots. He was released during final roster cuts and re-signed two days later. With the acquisition of Antonio Brown, the Patriots opted to ship Thomas to the Jets in exchange for a 2021 sixth-round pick.
In his return to action, Thomas caught seven passes for 87 yards and two touchdowns during the Patriots’ preseason finale. Although it came against the Giants backups, he did look spry nine months after tearing his Achilles.
Caught Tebow’s last NFL Touchdown pass
In the 2012 NFL playoffs, Demaryius Thomas connected with Tim Tebow for what became one of the most memorable moments in recent Broncos’ franchise history.
Thomas caught an 80-yard touchdown pass from Tebow on the first play from scrimmage in overtime. The Broncos upset the Steelers in walk-off fashion to advance to the divisional round against the Patriots.
The throw from Tebow was the final touchdown pass of his NFL career.
He also caught Manning’s record-setting score
In October 2014, Demaryius Thomas caught Peyton Manning’s 509th career touchdown pass. That set the all-time record for touchdown passes in an NFL career, as Manning passed Brett Favre.
Manning finished his career with 539 touchdown passes. Drew Brees and Tom Brady aren’t too far behind and could surpass that mark this season.
