Raiders’ Chip Kelly gives Pete Carroll credit for Dont’e Thornton Jr.
Las Vegas Raiders rookie wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr. is expected to make a sizable impact this season. That statement feels especially true after Amari Cooper abruptly retired on Thursday. There’s now nothing standing in Thornton’s way of being the Raiders X receiver all year long.
Raiders general manager John Spytek selected Thornton with a fourth-round selection (No. 108 overall) during the 2025 NFL draft. As it turns out, it was a collaborative effort between the coaching staff and front office.
Offensive coordinator Chip Kelly discussed Thornton’s potential in the offense ahead of Sunday’s Week 1 opening matchup with the New England Patriots. Speaking about the decision to draft Thornton, Kelly deferred credit to head coach Pete Carroll for being infatuated with him as a prospect.
“Yeah, I think he was a good product coming in, and obviously our personnel department and really, Pete [Carroll],” Kelly said about the decision to draft Thornton. “Pete was the guy that kind of fell in love with him watching the tape, and we felt the same thing. As I said earlier, there aren’t many people that tall and long that are that fast, but I’ve seen him really embrace every day and just, I don’t think he was thinking about starting or anything.
“And you saw him grow on a daily basis. Now, obviously the next jump is he’s played in three preseason games. But the preseason games and the regular season games are different. But I expect, and I think he expects, I think everybody here expects him to play really well on Sunday because we always believe that you’re going to play on Sunday the way you train. And I think he trains at a really high level right now.”
Thornton’s combination of size and speed, paired with opportunity in the offense, could allow him to hit the ground running on Sunday.