Who Should I Start? Allen Lazard or Dont'e Thornton Jr.

Tuesday, August 12, 12:32 PM

New York Jets wide receiver Allen Lazard (shoulder) will be out for a couple of weeks as he tends to his shoulder injury, according to Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic. Lazard will now most likely miss the rest of the preseason after picking up a right-shoulder injury in the preseason opener last weekend against the Green Bay Packers. Depending on how the 29-year-old recovers, he could be in danger of missing the Week 1 regular-season opener in early September as well. For a player that struggled with drops last year and is competing for a starting role in 2025, this isn't exactly great news. With Lazard out for a couple weeks, it will give Tyler Johnson a leg up as he looks to lock down the WR3 role in New York behind Garrett Wilson and Josh Reynolds. Lazard had 37 catche for 530 yards and six touchdowns in 12 games (10 starts) last year with the Jets.

Wednesday, August 6, 12:06 PM

On the Las Vegas Raiders' first unofficial depth chart of the preseason, they've listed rookie wide receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr. as a starter opposite Jakobi Meyers. Thornton has impressed all season leading into his first year in the NFL and continues to get reps with the first-team offense during training camp. With the Raiders expected to play their starters in their preseason opener this Thursday against the Seattle Seahawks, we should see the 22-year-old get some run with quarterback Geno Smith for a series or two. So far, Thornton has been more impressive than Jack Bech, and he could operate as Smith's top deep threat down the field in 2025. Thornton averaged an impressive 25.4 yards per catch in his final season at Tennessee and could be worth a late-round flier in deep fantasy leagues. RotoBaller has him ranked as the WR78.