Getty Tyquan Thornton #9 of the Baylor Bears celebrates a touchdown reception against the Mississippi Rebels during the fourth quarter in the Allstate Sugar Bowl at Caesars Superdome on January 01, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
The Green Bay Packers have lost quite a bit of speed in their receiver room with Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling both departing this offseason, but an even faster rookie prospect is on their radar for the 2022 NFL draft.
According to Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network, the Packers have already hosted Baylor wideout Tyquan Thornton for an official Top 30 visit and are one of several teams showing interest in his top-of-the-class speed for next month’s big event. He added that Thornton has also “met extensively” with the San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions and went out to dinner with the New Orleans Saints on March 30.
Thornton made a good case for being a deep-threat receiver at the NFL level during his four years at Baylor, averaging 15.7 yards on 143 career receptions and finishing his senior season with 62 catches for 948 yards and 10 touchdowns — three of which came on receptions of more than 20 yards. He then backed it up by recording the fastest 40-yard dash time among receivers in the 2022 class, clocking in at 4.28 seconds.
The next-fastest wideout times in the class were Tennessee’s Venus Jones (4.31) and Memphis’ Calvin Austin III (4.32). All three of them finished faster than the 4.33-40 time that Valdes-Scantling recorded during the 2018 NFL Combine.
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Can Thornton Quench Packers’ Need for Speed?
Earlier this week, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur told reporters the team would “definitely” need to acquire more speed at the receiver position for next year with Adams now in Las Vegas and Valdes-Scantling in Kansas City. As things stand, Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb and Amari Rodgers are their three starting wideouts for 2022.
“If you look at our roster right now, we definitely need to get some speed in that room,” LaFleur said. “We need a legit guy that can take off the top of the coverage. We lost a guy that was pretty good at doing that. It’s like putting a puzzle together. You’ve got to find those pieces that you’re missing and put it all together.”
Could Thornton potentially be one of those missing pieces?
At 6-foot-2 and 181 pounds, Thornton is thin-framed and lacks a degree of elusiveness that holds him back on shorter routes, but his exceptional speed allows him to blaze past defenders and keeps him from getting caught once the ball is in his hands. He also displayed good instincts for finding open spots in coverages in his senior year and has become a natural at catching passes away from his body.
Another appealing aspect of Thornton’s game is his willingness to put his body on the line as a blocker, something that is critical to LaFleur’s offensive system. He doesn’t have the mass and physicality of a guy like Lazard, but he holds his own and seems truly committed to the unselfish responsibilities of his position. At the very least, that should earn him some points with the Packers’ front office.
Surprised there is so little buzz around a 6’2″, 4.28 forty WR that has production in a run heavy scheme at a Power 5 school.
Tyquan Thornton may end up being a steal for a team looking for a vertical field stretcher from the slot or outside.
Very will and quality blocker too
When Could Packers Target Thornton?
The Packers have 11 selections in the 2022 draft and can use some of those assets to move around the board via trades if they choose, but when would be a realistic time for them to consider targetting Thornton for a pick?
Thornton is ranked the 170th overall prospect on The Draft Network’s Big Board and the 22nd-best receiver in the class, while ESPN values him even less at No. 308 overall and the 40th-best wideout out of 47 listed in their rankings. In other words, the scouts don’t see him becoming an instant starter for any team willing to take a chance on him.
Given the depth at the receiver position, Thornton could come off the board as earlier as the fourth round if enough of the others are taken in the first two days. The Packers do have two fourth-round selections, but they might be content waiting to see if he drops into the fifth round if they like him, especially if they draft a higher-rated receiver in one of the earlier rounds as many are expecting them to do.