Nov 30, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr. (1) celebrates his touchdown with his teammates against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half at FirstBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

Will Raiders’ Rookie Compete For a Starting Job?

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Fernando Alfaro-Donis | Last updated May 6, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders' leading wide receiver was Jakobi Meyers last year, and he barely cracked 1,000 yards. While they did have Brock Bowers last year on offense, which helped with moving the ball downfield, their passing attack wasn't very good.

Blame it on inconsistent quarterback play, or blame it on a head coach who was afraid of explosive plays, or you could even blame it on the lack of talent in the wide receiver room, but the Raiders made sure to address their offense in the NFL draft.

Of their 11 total draft picks, seven were used on the offensive side of the ball, and four of those seven were skill players. One of those players was fourth-round pick Dont'e Thornton Jr., and he joins the Raiders with an interesting situation developing ahead of him.

He's currently projected to be the backup behind Meyers, but an argument can be made that he should be inserted into the starting lineup. Jack Bech is projected to be in the starting lineup, so I can't see why Thornton Jr. can't get the starting job as well.

Meyers has displayed that he's able to be a reliable pass catcher, and it wouldn't make sense to remove a rookie from the starting lineup to add another, so the odd one out is Tre Tucker. Tucker was drafted in the third round two years ago, and he had expectations to be a speedy receiver that the Raiders could utilize to take the top off of defenses and for them to respect the deep ball.

However, two years in his career, he's yet to crack 600 yards in either one and hasn't seen a ton of targets. He has gotten better from his rookie season, and he's still a young player, but it's fair to wonder if the Raiders have seen enough from Tucker.

There's a new regime in Las Vegas with John Spytek and Pete Carroll, and they have no allegiance with Tucker. They're looking to establish a new culture and turn this team around as quickly as possible, and if Tucker isn't the player they need, then they should have no problems demoting him from the starting lineup.

Tucker, alongside Zamir White, may be two Raiders players who lose their starting jobs to incoming rookies. I believe the Raiders should prioritize winning as many games as possible next season, and if these changes add more wins, I don't see why they wouldn't.

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

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