Who Should I Start? Adonai Mitchell or Dont'e Thornton Jr.

Monday, June 16, 12:23 PM

The Athletic's Stephen Holder writes that Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Adonai Mitchell had one of the most impressive performances at last week's mandatory minicamp. The 22-year-old second-round pick (52nd overall) in 2024 had an uneven and frustrating rookie campaign and finished with 23 catches on 55 targets for 312 yards and no touchdowns in 17 games (seven starts). Mitchell also looked good in training camp last summer, so now it's a matter of him taking his practice reps into the regular season. "I think last offseason, same thing. Did some really good things. He's had a hell of an offseason so far through OTAs. [I] expect that to continue through training camp. But getting to those game situations, [it's] just continuing to get those game reps and really taking that next step," head coach Shane Steichen said. Mitchell has the talent to take the next step, but target volume could be an issue again.

Friday, June 13, 1:08 PM

Las Vegas Raiders rookie fourth-round wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr. made strides during the offseason, according to ESPN's Ryan McFadden. Thornton caught a touchdown during the red-zone period during the first day of mandatory minicamp this week and also made an impressive catch in the middle of the field on Thursday. The 22-year-old spent a good amount of time working with the first-team offense, with the Raiders occasionally lining him and Tre Tucker up on the outside and Jakobi Meyers in the slot. The 6-foot-5 wideout has a unique blend of size and speed and ran a 4.3-second 40-yard dash at the combine. The Raiders are expecting the Tennessee product to give them juice in the vertical passing attack. Thornton will likely be competing for playing time with Tucker as more of a boom/bust deep threat in fantasy.