Q&A with Dont'e Thornton Jr. as he's preparing to live out his wildest dreams of playing in the NFL

Jul 31, 2025 at 04:06 PM

Levi Edwards

Digital Team Reporter

As the Raiders' 2025 draft picks go through their first NFL training camp, Raiders.com's Levi Edwards is sitting down with each player for a Q&A.

The next rookie to be highlighted is fourth-round pick Dont'e Thornton Jr.

LE: What went into the process of wanting to transfer from Oregon to Tennessee as an upperclassman?

DT: "With the way things were going at Oregon, I needed a fresh start to get myself going again. I felt like I had a good sophomore season and there was a chance for me to better myself. I wanted to accomplish my goal. My lifelong goal was to go to the NFL. I just needed to be somewhere I could excel at and I took that chance into the portal to Tennessee."

LE: Growing up in a single parent household with four younger siblings looking up to you, how much inspiration do you draw from your family?

DT: "In terms of my 'why,' my family is definitely one of my biggest 'whys' growing up where I grew up. I graduated from college this past December. Even with me getting there, there's not a lot of people from my community and neighborhood that have been able to do that. Knowing that I've done that and having younger siblings that are coming up behind me, I want to be that positive role model. You don't have to fall victim into statistics from your neighborhood; you can do more and be a positive light. Me doing this at the highest level, that shows my family that I can consistently do that."

LE: Speaking of your community, you grew up in the heart of Baltimore, Maryland. How much responsibility do you hold in representing where you're from?

DT: "Football has definitely been the number one thing to be my ticket out of where I'm from. Everybody I talk to back home always says, 'I'm proud of you for sticking to the process.' Football has been my thing since I was a little kid. I knew for sure at a certain age, football was going to be my way to make things different for my family. The younger kids back home, they look up to me. They see me doing it, so it makes them feel like that don't have to take the street route or do something that's not in a positive light. I just want to go back home and show these kids, 'I came from the same environment you have, but I made it out and you can do the same thing.'"

LE: Since OTAs, you've been taking reps at wideout with the first-team. Has this all come at you quickly or do you believe you were ready for a high workload this early?

DT: "A combination of both. I've been working my tail off from this past season through the draft process to when I first got here. I've just been working to take advantage of every opportunity that I'm given. Just me having that mindset and knowing I wouldn't be here without God. And God put me in this position to do this. I'm right where he wanted me to be at. Of course I have to go out there on the field and make those plays, but God had this plan for me written out way before I was born."

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Las Vegas Raiders tight end Justin Shorter (88) on the field for practice at 2025 Training Camp at Intermountain Health Performance Center.