I think everyone expected Brian Thomas Jr. to take a jump and become a solid WR2 option this season, but I don't know if anyone could've predicted him having this big of a season.

In his first two seasons as a Tiger, Thomas combined for 59 catches, 720 yards and seven touchdowns before absolutely exploding onto the scene this season. Thomas let us know right away that he was going to be a problem, catching seven balls for 142 yards which included a 75 yard touchdown at the end of the Florida State game.

Weeks 2-5 were one of the craziest four game stretches for a wide receiver I've seen in a long time. Thomas logged 26 catches for 396 yards and seven touchdowns in just four games. He capped off that four game stretch with a 124-yard, three touchdown performance against Ole Miss in the Tigers heartbreaking loss to the Rebels.

After his tremendous start to the season, Thomas went quiet in weeks six and seven, hauling in just six passes for 74 yards and one touchdown (which made up 42 of those yards). He'd bounce back with 122 yards and two touchdowns on three catches against Army before Alabama held him to three catches and 36 yards in the loss.

It began to feel like Thomas was coming back down to earth, but he turned things around for the final three games of the season, catching 15 passes for 311 yards and four touchdowns in the final three games of the regular season.

Thomas finished the year with a career high 60 catches, 1,079 yards and 15 touchdowns. It's crazy to think what his stats could've been if he didn't have a midseason slump. He already led the nation with 15 receiving touchdowns, but he could've potentially had anywhere from 17-19 touchdowns if he got more involved against Missouri, Army and Alabama.

Either way, Thomas finished first in the nation with 15 touchdowns, 14th in the nation with 1,079 receiving yards and top-60 in receptions and average yards per catch.

Jayden Daniels and Malik Nabers could've carried this offense pretty far, but having Brian Thomas Jr. as a second option took them to new levels. Not only did he put up 1,000+ yards and 15 touchdowns, he forced defenses to respect someone other than Nabers and it allowed him to get some favorable matchups.

I can't overstate how big of an impact Brian Thomas Jr. had on this offense. Before the season, Thomas probably wasn't an early-round NFL draft candidate coming into the season, but with his play, Thomas has likely worked his way into an early round pick and is projected as a top 50 pick by some NFL Draft experts.

Thomas exceeded expectations by a mile, and that's why he earned the No. 4 spot on this list.