What are the Saints going to do with Michael Thomas?

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Sean Payton expressed frustration Wednesday night over the fact that New Orleans Saints receiver Michael Thomas did not have ankle surgery until June, though he declined to elaborate on why the procedure was delayed.

Thomas, who was plagued by the injury throughout last season, is expected to miss time at the start of this season, as well.

"Well, look, it appears we're gonna have to spend some time without him. It's disappointing," Payton said during his opening training camp videoconference before the Saints' first practice Thursday. "And we'll work through it with the other players that are here. But the surgery took place, and obviously we would've liked that to happen earlier than later. And quite honestly, it should've."

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in January that Thomas was expected to undergo surgery to repair the torn deltoid and other injured ligaments in his ankle. But it was just revealed last week that Thomas did not have surgery until after he reported for the Saints' mandatory minicamp in June.

"After the season it was decided that he was gonna treat that conservatively. And I think we all had an expectation that [the ankle] would heal and he'd be fine coming into camp this year," Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said Wednesday. "But we get to the minicamp, and obviously it wasn't quite right. So we had to make the call and collectively made the call to have the surgery in June.

"Obviously with hindsight we would've preferred that surgery to be earlier in February or March. But it wasn't. You know, it is what it is. And hopefully he's had a good result so far, and hopefully we'll get him back sooner rather than later."

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