Demaryius Thomas is easily one of the most polarizing players in Denver Broncos history.
Despite being a perennial 1,000-yard receiver and one of the leaders in nearly every major receiving category, Thomas is a player that many fans feel has not lived up to his paycheck.
As someone that has frequently defended Thomas over the years, I would argue that Thomas has been a chameleon in the many different offensive schemes. Remember that Thomas put up numbers with quarterbacks like Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow and Trevor Siemian running the offense.
With that in mind, it is getting increasingly difficult to defend Thomas’ consistent issues with dropping the football. On any given day, Thomas is good for at least one drop that hits him directly in the hands, and it really does not make any sense. Thomas has as much athletic ability, if not more than any wide receiver that has ever suited up in the orange and blue.
Thomas can make plays that leave you absolutely speechless as an observer. He has broken off screens for 80-yard touchdowns, made one-handed grabs in the back of the end zone and has drastically improved as a route runner since breaking into the league in 2010.
The former first round pick from Georgia Tech also frequently leaves Broncos fans in disbelief for the wrong reasons though. In the Week 2 victory over Oakland, Thomas had one ball that was knocked out of his hands by a defensive back and another that simply hit him between the numbers, but fell to the turf. These are the moments that drive Broncos Country crazy.
If there is a silver lining to the situation, the Broncos appear to have a new strategy with Thomas in the passing offense this season. After generally using D.T. as a target downfield in the passing offense in years past, the Broncos are getting Thomas more consistent touches with short, quick passes near the line of scrimmage.
For his career, Thomas has averaged 13.6 yards per reception and in his previous eight seasons, Thomas has never averaged less than 10 yards per reception in a single season.
In the first two games of the 2018 season, D.T. has only averaged 7.4 yards per reception. The strategy of working Thomas in the short game seems to be working though. Thomas has brought in 11 receptions on 13 total targets and the veteran wide currently leads Broncos players with five or more targets this season with an 84 percent catch percentage.
If the veteran wide receiver can continue to produce at an efficient rate and eliminate some of the drops that have plagued him since 2015, the Broncos faithful will quickly embrace him as the superstar that he truly is.