Fans mock NFL Network following false Michael Thomas trade request report

The NFL Network received a ton of backlash after wrongly announcing that Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas had demanded a trade. Viewers did not take this false report lightly as fans from all over bombarded Twitter and dragged the network's name through the mud.

Highly-coveted NFL insider Ian Rapoport featured in a segment about Thomas and tweeted out the news himself. This left football fans all over in confusion.

False headline from NFL Network

Rapoport was describing the logistics of a POTENTIAL Michael Thomas trade…BUT that headline is making this suuuuuper conflicting information.@nflnetwork has to clean that up, or confirm it’s true. Not the best look. pic.twitter.com/LGqAL59UT1

— Andrew Doak (@AndrewDoak_WWL) August 10, 2021

The tweet was then deleted from his Twitter account the following morning (August 11). It ultimately created more confusion because the tweet was up for over 12 hours. Be that as it may, as pointed out in the tweet below, just because both parties have an issue with one another doesn't mean that the relationship is over.

If I got in an argument with my employer...Ian Rapoport questions my future with the company in a story, which is fine, but uses a headline for the story of "Report: Scott Wants To Leave His Job", which is not fine.It took Rap a LONG time to delete his tweet too.

— Scott Prather (@Scott_1420) August 11, 2021

Even though no one has a clue what's going on with NFL Network, fans were not happy with the report There's clearly a conundrum reaching its boiling point. However, for the network to create its own headlines based on inaccurate facts is unprofessional - plain and simple.

The Michael Thomas and Saints' wavering relationship

It's no secret that there is a deteriorating relationship between the New Orleans Saints and Michael Thomas. Head coach Sean Payton and Thomas met to clear the air regarding the timing of the 27-year-old's ankle surgery and subsequent posts on social media that expressed the receivers' frustrations.

The realtionship between Michael Thomas and the #Saints is far from great, however a trade is ‘very complicated’ to facilitate.(via @RapSheet) pic.twitter.com/QOJXux74eg

— CTB (@catchtheblitz) August 10, 2021

The Saints' star wideout underwent ankle surgery in June which put his availability for the start of the 2021 NFL season in jeopardy. The timing of this surgery couldn't have come at a worse time. The recommended timetable for the recovery of this procedure is said to be four months. This means Thomas will miss a few weeks at the start of the season.

Considering all of the above, there's a real reason to suspect that Thomas could in fact demand a trade. That being said, the NFL Network jumped the gun and announced created a report based on pure conjecture. A future trade could very well be on the horizon, but, as for now, that's not the case.