Demaryius Thomas' preseason debut proves he can provide added firepower to Patriots' offense

Veteran receiver Demaryius Thomas got to make his debut as a New England Patriot in Thursday night's preseason finale against the New York Giants. And what a debut it was.

The expectations for the 31 year old wideout were low heading into the game; just nine months removed from a torn Achilles, the final preseason game was seen as a good opportunity for Thomas to get some live game reps and get a feel for New England's offensive scheme in-game.

The result - in six series of play, Thomas notched seven receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns.

"To get into game pace, to get calls, lineup, see different coverages, see different guys than I see at practice, I think it's a great start for me and I can build on it," Thomas said during his postgame press conference.

Thomas' performance against New York provided something that he hasn't had since Nov. 26 of last season - an end zone appearance. As a Houston Texan last season, Thomas scored two touchdowns in the team's Week 11 game vs. the Tennessee Titans in which he also had a two-touchdown performance. However, that was the only time he scored a TD between Week 7 of last season and Week 15, which is when he tore his Achilles.

Thursday night proved Thomas still has what it takes to not just help move the chains for the Patriots, but also put points on the board.

"I was excited about (getting in the end zone twice) as well," Thomas said. "It's been a long time since I've been in the end zone. To have on a Patriots jersey on and score, it was big for me."

With a little nine days remaining before the Patriots take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in the regular-season opener, the team is excited to see where Thomas is at in his recovery and at this stage in his career. With Josh Gordon, Julian Edelman, and rookie N'Keal Harry on the roster, having Thomas healthy and productive is an added bonus to what seems to be a loaded offensive unit.

Thomas' size will be utilized similarly to how it was in the preseason finale, catching balls over the middle of the field and using his body against smaller defensive players to come down with the football. Though it's just one game, and a preseason game against second and third-team roster talent, Thursday night showed how productive Thomas can be when fully healthy, which is much more than many may have expected when they signed him back in April.

"(Thomas is) a phenomenal player, he's been around for a really long time," rookie quarterback Jarrett Stidham said during postgame. "It was really good to get some throws in to him, and to Josh (Gordon), and to Julian (Edelman), guys that have been in the league a long time. They are great players for a reason. It was a lot of fun."