Michael Thomas: 'Emotions Got the Best of Me' During Fight at Saints Practice

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas returned to the field for the first time since Week 1 on Sunday and helped lead his team to a 38-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"It felt great just to be out there with the guys and dominate the game on all sides of the ball," he told reporters. "... It was a great time. I'm at a loss for words."

Thomas also addressed the practice incident with defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson that left him sidelined for the Week 5 win over the Los Angeles Chargers and said, "My emotions got the best of me in that situation. I've grown from that, and I'm here to help my team win games, finish the mission and win a championship."

While it was widely reported the Saints suspended Thomas at the time, Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk reported that technically wasn't the case.

Instead, the Saints fined him $58,823.53 "for Conduct Detrimental to the Club" so that his potential future guarantees were not voided. What's more, possibly voiding those $27.95 million in future guarantees could have led to a grievance from the NFL Players Association.

That is not the only reason Thomas was sidelined, as he battled injuries throughout the first half of the year.

The Ohio State product finished with five catches for 51 yards, both team-high marks, in the blowout win over Tampa Bay and appeared to shake off some rust following such a long layoff. The game was never in doubt, and New Orleans built a 31-0 halftime lead behind the brilliance of Drew Brees and the defense.

While players such as Alvin Kamara, Emmanuel Sanders, Jared Cook and Tre'Quan Smith helped the Saints survive Thomas' absence, they are much more formidable championship contenders with him on the field.

He set the single-season receptions record with 149 for 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns and is arguably the best wide receiver in the league. Just his presence opens up plenty of other options for the rest of the offense because he draws so much attention from opposing defenses.

While he won't match those numbers in 2020 after missing so much time, his goal of winning a championship is still very much in play following New Orleans' 6-2 start.