Washington Football Team tight end Logan Thomas faces a longer recovery after further tests revealed a torn ACL, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter. Thomas is expected to undergo surgery this week and be ready for the start of the 2022 season.

Washington initially feared that Thomas had torn the ACL and MCL in his left knee in a Dec. 5 game vs. the Las Vegas Raiders. However, more tests the following week revealed knee damage -- but not to his ACL. The organization breathed a collective sigh of relief, knowing his recovery would be a lot easier without a torn ACL.

But even last week, after Thomas was placed on injured reserve, coach Ron Rivera said doctors were going to "keep an eye on it. They're going to have one more doctor look at it."

Before putting him on IR, Washington had debated keeping Thomas on the active 53-man roster in case the team made the playoffs and could use him at some point in the postseason. Because it was his second stay on IR, it ended his season. At the time, Rivera said they didn't want to rush Thomas back.

Thomas had signed a three-year extension worth up to $24.065 million in August. He caught a career-high 72 passes for 670 yards and six touchdowns in 2020 and became one of the NFL's best red zone targets at tight end. This season, Thomas was limited to six games -- he missed five games with a hamstring injury -- and caught 18 passes, three for touchdowns, and 196 yards.

Ricky Seals-Jones took over as the No. 1 tight end with Thomas out. Seals-Jones has caught 24 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns in 10 games.