New York Giants Draft Prospect: WR Dont’e Thornton Jr., Tennessee

Can Dont’e Thornton Jr. develop into more of jsut a straight-line runner at the NFL level? He has the speed, but needs to polish up his route running after being limited in that role.

Dont’e Thornton Jr, WR

Height: 6’5”
Weight: 205 lbs
Class: Senior
School: Tennessee
Hand size: 9 ⅝”
Arm length: 32 ⅛”
40-yard-dash: 430s
10-yard-split: 1.51s
Vertical Jump: 33”
Broad Jump: 10’6”
STATS

A former four-star recruit out of Mount Saint Joseph High School in Baltimore, Maryland, where he was the second player from his state and the 11th wide receiver during the 2021 recruiting cycle.

He initially attended Oregon for two seasons before transferring to Tennessee after the 2022 year. He was a four-star recruit in the transfer portal and the 13 overall receiver that year, while being the 63rd player in the portal.

Thorton led college football with a 25.4 yards per reception mark in 2024. He averaged a rare 21.9 yards per reception over his four years at two separate schools on 65 total catches – that’s very impressive.

Thornton aligned predominately out wide (95.7%) in 2024 but took 27.3% of his total career snaps in the slot. Averaged a career 2.80 yards per route run and a 3.72 yards per route run in 2024. He’s a low-volume home-run hitter. Dont’e Thornton Jr. was in attendance at the East-West Shrine Bowl.

Strengths

Rare size and speed combination with elite catch radius
Elite vertical speed and acceleration
Vertical explosiveness to take the top off of defenses
True difference-making – HOMERUN – speed
Quickly snaps his curl/comeback routes to QB – ability to drop hips and turn suddenly
Excellent vertical threat – tracks football well
Very good concentration and ability to extend away from his frame
Solid ability to time jumps to climb the ladder
Soft hands to snag fastballs out of the air – catches well around his frame
Good overall body control and balance in deep portions of the field
Displayed ability to win contested catch situations in 2024

Catching up with Baltimore native, the pride of @MSJ_Football, it is Dont'e Thornton Jr. @IamDTJ11, former Tenn WR, now NFL Draft prospect after dazzling in Indy at the Combine, posting a 4.30 40-time!

Listen at https://t.co/3ShCqqozAt and Watch LIVE: https://t.co/dxFU87gxXY
— Glenn Clark (@GlennClarkRadio) March 3, 2025

Weaknesses

Very limited route tree at Tennessee
Not the sharpest cuts in the world – rounded at top of break
Lacks creativity and high-end agility/COD for YAC
Low volume – never had more than 26 catches in a season
Lacks consistency – just disappears in games

Summary

Dont’e Thornton Jr. has rare NFL speed with an elite ability to take the top off of defenses. The threat of him could dictate coverage on certain teams that can stretch the field vertically.

Thornton has good overall ball skills with the necessary tracking, concentration, body control, and leaping ability to win 50-50 ball situations.

Thornton will have a role in the NFL, but questions about that role are fair. Can he be more than just a field-stretching, wind-sprint runner who makes a big play every few games?

It’s possible, but development with his route running must take place for the explosive sudden athlete to be maximized as a wide receiver.

GRADE: 6.0D

Nick Falato's Draft Grade Chart | Nick Falato

Dont’e Thornton Jr, WR

Strengths

Weaknesses

Summary

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