Top 25 Players in AFL History: #12 Stevie Thomas
Published on June 7, 2012 under Arena Football League (AFL) News Release
CHICAGO - Continuing its countdown of the 25 Greatest Players in AFL History, the Silver Anniversary Committee has announced its selection for the 12th Greatest Player in AFL History: Stevie Thomas.
A 2011 AFL Hall of Fame inductee, Thomas was a player whose star shined brightest on the biggest stage.
Upon joining the Tampa Bay Storm in 1991, Thomas became an immediate contributor, helping the team to its first championship victory with a 48-42 win over the Detroit Drive in ArenaBowl V. Thomas was the game's MVP, hauling in four of quarterback Jay Gruden's five touchdown passes.
His ArenaBowl V championship ring would be the first of five in his career.
The 1992 season would prove to be one of the best statistical seasons of Thomas' career. He caught 67 passes for 1,203 yards and 26 touchdowns, earning First-Team All-Arena honors along the way. In 1995, Thomas saw a jump in production on both sides of the ball, as he not only recorded his second 1,000-yard receiving season, but also collected 22 tackles and returned two interceptions for touchdowns on defense. The following year, he snagged three more picks en route to the second ArenaBowl MVP award of his career.
The ArenaBowl X MVP award was significant, as Thomas and the Storm defeated Kurt Warner and the Iowa Barnstormers 42-38 in what was later voted the Greatest Game of Arena Football history by the AFL Historical Committee in 2006. Of the 20 games the Committee selected as the greatest in AFL history, Thomas was MVP of four of them and Ironman of the Game in a fifth.
For his career, Thomas played in six ArenaBowls, winning five. He still holds the most career 100-yard receiving games in ArenaBowl history (3) and is tied for the most career receiving touchdowns (10). He ranks second in ArenaBowl history in receiving yards (446), points scored (66) and touchdowns (11).
He retired in 2001 as the AFL's all-time leader in fumble recoveries and interceptions returned for touchdowns, an impressive feat considering he did not begin to play both sides of the ball until his fifth season in the League. He was named to the AFL 15th Anniversary Team as a wide receiver and linebacker in 2001 and was voted the 9th Greatest Player in AFL History by the AFL Historical Committee in 2006.
In 2011, Thomas, along with former teammates George LaFrance and Sylvester Bembery, was inducted in the AFL Hall of Fame.
The League's Silver Anniversary Committee will continue to countdown its list of the 25 Greatest Players in AFL History each week throughout the 2012 regular season, with the announcements of the Top 5 during the postseason. 25 Greatest Players in AFL History
12. Stevie Thomas
13. Kenny McEntyre
14. John Corker
15. Dwayne Dixon
16. Kurt Warner
17. Bob McMillen
18. Mark Grieb
19. Darryl Hammond
20. Alvin Rettig
21. Durwood Roquemore
22. Chris Jackson
23. Ben Bennett
24. Clevan Thomas
25. Gary Mullen
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