Las Vegas Raiders make a few very surprising roster moves and changes as they prepare for the New York Jets
The Las Vegas Raiders are preparing for the New York Jets this week and have activated Dont’e Thornton Jr. while releasing Jonah Laulu.
The Las Vegas Raiders took a flier on former Oklahoma Sooners defensive tackle Jonah Laulu by signing him to their practice squad and then letting him fight for a role on the 53-man roster. He not only fought for a role, but also took over as the starter next to Adam Butler after Christian Wilkins was released.
Now, he’s been released just a year later after having a career season.
Laulu has been a healthy scratch for the Raiders in a few recent games. Almost everyone has beaten him, including Tonka Hemingway. The emergence of second-year defensive tackle Hemingway is a major reason Vegas is so comfortable moving on from the Las Vegas native. That says a lot, because Laulu even broke franchise records with the Raiders.
“DT Jonah Laulu brings down TEN QB Cam Ward for a sack and a loss of nine yards. Laulu now has a career-high 4.0 sacks in 2025, the third most in the NFL among interior defensive linemen. DT Jonah Laulu is the first Raiders defensive tackle to record four sacks in his first six games of a single season since Bill Pickel in 1986 (4.5).” – Raiders PR Staff during their 2025 match vs. Tennessee
They also made another roster move.
The Raiders activated wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr.
We all know how bad the wide receiver room has been this season. Jalen Nailor, a guy you have paid a ton of money to, has done virtually nothing. Jack Bech broke his arm in Week 2. And Tre Tucker is only now emerging as an elite deep threat, but only over the last two weeks.
Bringing Thornton Jr. in, who hasn’t played yet this season, gives the Raiders more ability to shake things up. Now, don’t expect him to play 100% of the snaps right away. He likely needs to get in better game shape and make sure he’s got the playbook and offense down. Sure, he could have been studying it while he’s been out. But it’s another thing, actually, to go out on the field and do it.
