Is Michael Thomas the best wide receiver in the NFL today? His New Orleans Saints teammate Emmanuel Sanders certainly thinks so.

During a training camp press conference, Sanders was asked about his impression of Thomas after the three-time Pro Bowler previously expressed his eagerness and excitement to work with him.

The 33-year-old Sanders was full of praise for the 27-year-old Thomas, whom he called a “physical specimen.”

“Mike is the best receiver in the league, hands down,” Sanders said of the Saints' No.1 wideout. “I have been fortunate to play with Demaryius Thomas, Antonio Brown and this guy comes to work every single day. The way he's able to create separation just from press, release, from everything. I told him this, I said, I've been watching film on you for a couple years and I didn't realize how big you were until I got here.

“He's a physical specimen as well. We're watching film and I'm learning the playbook through watching him routes. I'm impressed almost every day just by the plays he makes and the way he just shoves guys off of him as well. I definitely think him and Julio (Jones) are up there for the best receivers in the league for sure. Just seeing what these guys can do.”

That's certainly very high praise for the fifth-year receiver from the newest member of the Saints.

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Dylan Bruton ·

Emmanuel Sanders may very well be right though, as Michael Thomas led the league in receiving yards in 2019 after accumulating 1,725 receiving yards. The second-highest receiver, Julio Jones, only had 1,394 yards.

Like Sanders mentioned, he is not new to playing with high-caliber wideouts, sharing the field with the likes of Antonio Brown and Demaryius Thomas. The threat of Thomas will help Sanders a lot in 2020 following his stint in San Francisco where he was the primary target for Jimmy Garoppolo in their run to the Super Bowl.