Raiders’ Chip Kelly gives Pete Carroll credit for Dont’e Thornton Jr.
#Raiders OC Chip Kelly on rookie WR Dont’e Thornton Jr., who is slated to start at X receiver
“Pete (Carroll) was the guy that fell in love with him on tape. We felt the same thing. There aren’t many people that tall and long (6’5) that are that fast (4.28 40). I’ve seen him…
— Nick Walters (@nickwalt) September 4, 2025
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.