Saints RB Thomas stands out

• By SHELDON MICKLES
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Aug 5, 2008 - Page: 1C - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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JACKSON, Miss. — When the New Orleans Saints gathered at their Metairie training facility in mid-March to begin their offseason program, Pierre Thomas heard the words every young player wants to hear.

Nearly five months later, the second-year running back’s eyes light up when he recalls the conversation. That the words came from the leader of one of the NFL’s best offenses, quarterback Drew Brees, made them even more important to Thomas.

“Drew came up to me and said, ‘Hey, I like what you did last year and we’re going to use you more this year,’ ” Thomas said. “I feel positive about that, especially when it’s coming from Drew Brees. Now I feel like I have a lot more weight on my shoulders because I have to stand up. I have to back myself up now.

“It puts a lot of pressure on you because that’s the quarterback. He’s the boss on the field and you have to listen to what he says. So the only thing I can do is go out there and do the job.”

The quiet and unassuming former Illinois standout has no choice but to do the job. Every day at training camp, he lines up in a crowded backfield that includes Deuce McAllister, Reggie Bush and Aaron Stecker — knowing he has to hold his own to get some playing time this season.

“You have to go out and show these guys you can play,” Thomas said.

He’s already done that. One year ago in camp, the unknown and undrafted rookie came out of nowhere and consistently outperformed fourth-round draft pick Antonio Pittman to win a spot on the 53-man regular-season roster.

Thomas played sparingly in the backfield despite the loss of McAllister to a knee injury in Week 3 and earned his stripes on special teams.

But he made a name for himself in the season finale at Chicago, his hometown, when he became the first Saints player and only the second rookie in NFL history to pile up 100 yards rushing (20 carries, 105 yards) and 100 yards receiving (12 catches, 121 yards) in the same game.

While he opened some eyes that afternoon, Thomas knows he won’t make a living off a single game.

“It was one game, OK,” he said without a hint of arrogance. “You need seasons of that. You need about 10 games like that, so I have a lot of work to do. But hopefully, that one game has showed people that I can play at this level and I can play a full game.”

It was the first NFL start for Thomas, who was thrust into action when McAllister, Bush and Stecker were all sidelined with injuries. What few people know, however, is Thomas played that day with two fractured ribs, an injury he suffered a week earlier against Arizona.

“My ribs were real sore, but I didn’t think much about it during the week because I was getting ready to start,” Thomas said. “They said, ‘We need you.’ So I just kept practicing with it and played with it.”