There's a lot of hype in Las Vegas for rookie wide receiver Dont'e Thornton.
And for good reason: A couple of his traits have only been matched in NFL history by legends Calvin Johnson and Randy Moss.
Specifically, Thornton is only the third WR ever to run a 40-yard dash in the 4.3-second window and measure 6-foot-5, along with those two all-time greats.
Thornton has also made an early case to the Raiders, as they named him a starter on their unofficial depth chart. He joins Jakobi Meyers and Tre Tucker on the first team, and is ahead of Jack Bech, even though Bech was drafted before Thornton.
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The Raiders drafted Thornton in the fourth round of April's NFL Draft, at No. 108 overall.
He started his college career at Oregon, but he broke out once he transferred to Tennessee. In 2024, he had 26 catches for 661 yards and six touchdowns, which works out to 25.4 yards per catch.
Then at the NFL Combine, Thornton ran a 4.30-second 40-yard dash while also measuring 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds. He's a physical monster.
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This summer, Thornton impressed, and his usage in the preseason finale showed that off.
Thornton was out there with the first-team offense, and down near the end zone, starting QB Geno Smith looked Thornton's way for a back-shoulder jump ball near the front pylon.
The rookie came down with the pass for a touchdown.
There seems like there's going to be plenty more where that came from as the 2025 NFL regular season gets underway.
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