May 15, 2017
THE FLATS – Former Georgia Tech quarterback Justin Thomas has joined the National Football League’s New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent. Thomas earned a spot with the Saints following a tryout as part of the team’s rookie minicamp this past weekend.
Thomas, one of the most decorated quarterbacks in Georgia Tech history, will look to earn a spot on the Saints’ 2017 roster as a defensive back. In addition to his successful tryout this weekend, Thomas also played DB at the 2017 Reese’s Senior Bowl and made one tackle despite not being added to the roster until the day before the game.
In three seasons as Georgia Tech’s starting signal-caller, Thomas amassed the fourth-most yards of total offense in program history with 7,166. He also ranks among the Yellow Jackets’ all-time leaders with a 141.8 career pass-efficiency rating (fourth in school history), 40 touchdown passes (fifth), 4,754 passing yards (sixth) and 2,412 rushing yards (ninth).
As a senior in 2016, he accounted for 2,163 yards of total offense (1,559 passing, 604 rushing) and 14 touchdowns (eight passing, six rushing) while throwing only two interceptions. Along the way, he became the 39th player in NCAA Division I FBS history and the first at Tech with 4,000 passing yards and 2,000 rushing yards in a career. The 5-11, 185-pounder ran a sub-4.4 40-yard dash at Georgia Tech’s Pro Day in March.
Thomas is the fifth member of the Yellow Jackets’ 2016 roster to join the NFL ranks. Place kicker Harrison Butker was picked in the seventh round of last month’s NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers while linebacker P.J. Davis, defensive lineman Patrick Gamble and defensive lineman Francis Kallon signed undrafted free-agent deals with the Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers, respectively.
