Dallas Cowboys (first stint) Thomas was selected by the
Dallas Cowboys in the first round (23rd overall) of the
1970 NFL draft. As a rookie, even though he did not start until the fifth game of the season, he led the team in rushing, while finishing eighth in the newly merged 26-team league with 803 rushing yards (second in the
National Football Conference behind
NFL rushing champion Larry Brown of the rival
Washington Redskins) on 151 carries (a league-leading 5.3 yards per carry) and 5
touchdowns. At the end of the season, already being compared to
Jim Brown, he was named the NFL rookie of the year. In playoff wins over
Detroit and
San Francisco, Thomas rushed for 135 and 143 yards, becoming the first rookie with two 100-yard rushing playoff games. When asked "Is this the ultimate game?" during the week leading up to
Super Bowl V, he replied, "Well, they're playing it next year, aren't they?" He had 18 rushes and four receptions for 37 and 21 yards respectively, caught a 7‐yard touchdown pass as Dallas took a 13–6 lead in the second quarter and fumbled at the
Baltimore Colts' one‐yard line in the Cowboys' first possession of the second half. During the offseason Thomas requested his three-year contract be rewritten. When Cowboys management refused to renegotiate, he called team president
Tex Schramm “deceitful,” player personnel director
Gil Brandt “a liar” and head coach
Tom Landry “a plastic man...no man at all." Following his refusal to report to training camp, Thomas was traded on July 31,
1971 to the
New England Patriots with
Halvor Hagen and Honor Jackson, in exchange for
Carl Garrett and the Patriots' first choice in the
1972 NFL draft. Within a week, because of problems with the Patriots and head coach
John Mazur, in an unprecedented move
NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle voided part of the trade, sending Thomas and Garrett back to their original teams. The Patriots kept Hagen and Jackson in exchange for a second (#35-
Robert Newhouse) and third round (possibly 1972 #64-
Mike Keller) draft choices in the
1972 NFL draft. Thomas returned to the Cowboys, but decided to keep silent all season long, refusing to speak to teammates, management, or the media. In October
1971, Thomas scored the first
touchdown in the new
Texas Stadium playing against the Patriots. That same season, Thomas led the league in rushing touchdowns (11) and total touchdowns (13). He also was named
All-Pro and led the Cowboys with 95 rushing yards and a touchdown in Dallas' 24–3 win over the
Miami Dolphins in
Super Bowl VI, the franchise's first. In a postgame interview following that Super Bowl,
CBS television announcer
Tom Brookshier noted Thomas' speed and asked him, rhetorically, "Are you that fast?" Thomas responded, "Evidently." Thomas was reportedly voted as the
Super Bowl Most Valuable Player by an overwhelming margin. Thomas, however, had boycotted the media throughout the season as well, and Larry Klein, editor of
Sport, which presented the award, did not know how Thomas would act at a banquet in New York. With this in mind Klein announced quarterback
Roger Staubach as the winner. During the
1972 off-season he became even more isolated and insubordinate, so he was traded to the
San Diego Chargers for
Mike Montgomery and
Billy Parks on July 31, 1972.
San Diego Chargers Thomas began his stint with the Chargers by earning a 20-day suspension for failing to report to the team, and matters deteriorated from there. He never played a game for the Chargers, as the team placed him on the reserve list, making him ineligible for the rest of the
1972 season.
Washington Redskins Thomas played with the
Washington Redskins in
1973 and
1974, rushing for a total of 442 yards under head coach
George Allen. Reportedly seeking a substantial salary increase, he did not report to training camp in
1975, and was waived on August 13.
The Hawaiians (WFL) In August
1975, Thomas was signed by the
Hawaiians of the
World Football League to replace an injured
Calvin Hill, although the
Philadelphia Bell claimed they owned Thomas' negotiating rights after being released by the
Washington Redskins. He was with the team for only 1½ months and was released in early October,
British Columbia Lions (CFL) Thomas signed with the
British Columbia Lions He finished his NFL career with 2,038 rushing yards, 453 carries and 21
touchdowns. He also caught 38 passes for 297 yards and 3 touchdowns. ==NFL career statistics==