Who Should I Start? Andrei Iosivas or Dont'e Thornton Jr.

Thursday, July 31, 3:55 PM

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andrei Iosivas had a relatively productive sophomore season in 2024, securing 36 of his 61 targets for 479 yards and six touchdowns. According to ESPN Bengals reporter Ben Baby, the former sixth-round pick out of Princeton has had a stellar start to his third training camp. "Iosivas continued his dazzling camp with a couple of big-time catches from quarterback Joe Burrow," Baby wrote. "Early on Wednesday, Iosivas had some very strong reps in a 1-on-1 drill. But the highlight of the day was a one-handed snag down the middle of the field, even with cornerback Josh Newton making the throwing window a tight one. It was an example of how much Iosivas has grown over the years." While Iosivas is stuck behind Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in the target pecking order, he's one of the top "handcuff" wide receivers in fantasy football. Should Higgins or Chase have to miss time, he could be a productive streaming option for fantasy managers in a pinch. He presents more upside in deep leagues or best ball formats as part of one of the best passing offenses in the NFL.

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.