Looks good in training camp

Thornton, who has seen a portion of first-team reps in training camp, "looks like a player on the rise," according to Zack Cox of NESN.com.

The Patriots traded up in April in order to select Thornton in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 50th overall. Though the speedster is competing for targets with experienced pros DeVante Parker, Jakobi Meyers, Kendrick Bourne and Nelson Agholor, the 6-foot-2, 182-pound Baylor product is a player to watch if he's able to parlay his 4.28 speed into a a field-stretching role in the team's offense. Steady volume may not be immediate for Thornton as a rookie, but if injuries end up thinning out New England's wideout corps as the 2022 season rolls along, the soon-to-be 22-year-old could enter the fantasy lineup equation.