Raiders drafting Dont'e Thornton Jr. shows they are serious about putting different types of weapons around Geno Smith
There's no doubt that the Las Vegas Raiders needed some wide receiver help coming into the 2025 NFL Draft. Everyone knew they would get at least one guy to help former Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith in 2025, and they did in Jack Bech.Then, they went and got another guy in the fourth round. The […]
There's no doubt that the Las Vegas Raiders needed some wide receiver help coming into the 2025 NFL Draft. Everyone knew they would get at least one guy to help former Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith in 2025, and they did in Jack Bech.
Then, they went and got another guy in the fourth round. The Raiders' first pick on Day 3 is a guy the Raiders are going all in on to bet that his development pans out. With the 108th pick in the draft, the Raiders ended up taking Dont'e Thornton Jr., the wide receiver out of Tennessee.
The Raiders know that to get the most out of Geno Smith, you have to protect him, so they drafted two offensive linemen and put weapons around him, and they are doing that. Bech is a big-bodied wide receiver who can really play anywhere, even in the slot and the outside. He's physical, can run block, and can really go up and extend and get the ball if he has to. He's fast for his size, but he's not Thornton fast.
Drafting Thornton Jr. is more about getting Smith different types of weapons. They really did that here, as Thornton isn't like anyone already on the roster.
Raiders now have four different types of WRs
When you look at the four main WRs that the Raiders now have in Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, Jack Bech, and Dont'e Thornton Jr., they have a very different array of skills that make them the players that they are. That's good when it comes to putting weapons around a QB like Smith. It helps the Raiders be prepared to win in the passing game any way that they need to.
With Bech, the receiver they took on Day 2, they have a physical receiver that can run routes in the short or intermediate areas, and can be a possession catch guy. He has good run-blocking abilities, along with the ability to go up and get the ball, all of which we have already mentioned. Meyers and Tucker aren't that, and Thornton certainly isn't either.
Meyers is a route runner. He gets open in zone coverage, and his release off press man is elite. But, he only really works the intermediate, the sticks, and the middle of the field. He sits in zones and then creates plays afterwards. Meyers has some speed, but not anything insane, not like Tucker.
Tucker is a deep threat, but he's also a tool they use in the run game occasionally. He's a small body, though, so contested catches don't come often. He just gets open with his speed, whether it's stretch plays, posts, or corner routes. Thornton is fast, 4.30 fast, but he really just does one thing, albeit he does that one thing very well. He's a deep threat, and he can catch a deep ball contested because of his 6'4" frame. He needs some work on his route tree, but for what the Raiders need and want from him, he's perfect. And, in this day and age, speed kills.
Raiders drafting wide receiver Jack Bech says everything about the personality Pete Carroll wants the offense to have
The Raiders needed a wide receiver.
