Chip Kelly: Not many humans have size and speed like Raiders rookie WR Dont'e Thornton

NBC Sports

21-06-2025

At the NFL Scouting Combine, former Tennessee wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr. opened a lot of eyes by measuring 6-foot-5 and running his 40-yard dash in 4.30 seconds. He was the tallest player ever to run that fast at the Combine.
That led the Raiders to draft Thornton in the fourth round despite minimal production in college: He caught just 65 passes in four seasons of college football, two at Tennessee and two at Oregon. Raiders offensive coordinator Chip Kelly says that a unique talent like Thornton can develop into a productive receiver, even if he hasn't done it yet.
'I think Dont'e is unique in terms of he's just a hair under 6-5 and he ran 4.3. There's not a lot of humans on this planet that do that,' Kelly said, via Raiders.com. 'And I think if you had a draw up an outside receiver, you would pick that type of body type, someone that's got length, someone that's got a huge catch radius, but also has speed. Sometimes you can get a big guy like that, but he can't really run, so they can stay with him. So, you add that speed element to him, his ability to sink his hips, his ability to get in and out of cuts.'
The Raiders have a long history of valuing physical attributes like size and speed, and General Manager John Spytek said Raiders owner Mark Davis knows his father, Al Davis, would have loved Thornton.
'Mark joked that was the Al Davis pick of this draft,' Spytek said. 'The height, weight, speed, raw traits, athleticism, speed, and I think it's just focusing on what he can do and what he can be. . . . You watch his target tape, I think it's pretty impressive. And we think he hasn't hit his ceiling yet.'
The Raiders think they added a uniquely talented receiver when they brought Thornton to Las Vegas.