Who Should I Start? Jalen Coker or Dont'e Thornton Jr.

Saturday, August 9, 3:18 PM

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker made a strong statement in Friday's 30-10 preseason loss against the Cleveland Browns, capitalizing on an expanded role with a stat line of 2-17-1 on four targets. Entering his second year after a rookie season stat line of (32-478-2), Coker demonstrated the offseason growth that coaches had challenged him to achieve. Coker's standout performance included a five-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Bryce Young. The play came after Coker, who entered the game early following a Xavier Legette ejection, navigated a scramble play and found a hole in the back of the end zone. The impressive performance earned praise from head coach Dave Canales, who had worked closely with Coker on an offseason development plan. "Coker comes in when Xavier goes out and did a fantastic job, like we didn't skip a beat, made some great plays," Canales said, per a report on the Carolina Panthers website by Kassidy Hill. Coker, who also played on special teams, acknowledged the need to expand his game in a now-crowded receiver room. "I'm going to need to bring more than just catching the football," Coker said. His commitment to the plan, including staying in Charlotte for offseason training, appears to be paying off early in his second professional season.

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.