Oct 19, 2024; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr. (1) celebrates after a first down against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the third quarter at Neyland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Alan Poizner-Imagn Images Alan Poizner-Imagn Images

Raiders Rookie Will Exceed Expectations Next Season

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Fernando Alfaro-Donis | Last updated May 8, 2025 6:00 AM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders made it one of their priorities to focus on their offense in the draft, which makes sense as they were mainly focused on the defensive side of the ball in free agency. Their first-round pick was Ashton Jeanty, and he by himself is enough to lift this offense's floor a ton.

However, the Raiders made sure to keep up the offensive intensity, and of the 11 players the Raiders drafted, seven of them play on offense. After Jeanty, the Raiders drafted Jack Bech, who's an excellent wide receiver at blocking and creating in space. He'll be great in the locker room and fits the mold of the type of player John Spytek and Pete Carroll are looking for to turn this franchise around.

As good as Bech can be, there's another receiver the Raiders drafted who has the potential to be even better. The Raiders drafted Dont'e Thornton Jr. in the fourth round of the draft, and he could be one of the biggest draft steals this year.

The Raiders lacked reliable pass catchers outside of Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers, so to be able to get a player like Thornton Jr. in the fourth round is immense value. He's a speedster who has the potential to unlock more of his skill and expand his route tree under the right circumstances, like the Raiders.

I believe Thornton Jr. should be getting starting minutes next year, but even if he doesn't take the job of Tre Tucker next year, he'll still be very productive for the Raiders off the bench. The Pro Football & Sports Network recently published a list of rookies who will exceed expectations next year, and for the Raiders, their pick was Thornton Jr.

Seeing as he's currently a backup, his expectations may be low, but his speed alone warrants people to be aware of his play. He ran the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine in 4.30 seconds, which was the second fastest behind Matthew Golden, who was a first-round pick. Under Carroll and with Geno Smith throwing him the ball, Thornton Jr. is placed on a team where he can find sustained success early and often, which will exceed the expectations people have for him.

Please follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @HondoCarpenter and Instagram @HondoSr to debate Thornton's rookie year!

Sound off on this content and Thornton's rookie year on our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.

This article first appeared on Las Vegas Raiders on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: