In a way, Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Khyri Thornton was lucky to land on injured reserve his rookie season.
The Packers had a deep defensive line group last year and despite Thornton's fairly high draft pedigree - he was a third-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft - he may have actually been in danger of being cut less than six months after initially being chosen by Packers GM Ted Thompson.
Thornton is back this year, but so are BJ Raji and Letroy Guion, meaning the path to a roster spot for Thornton is littered with big bodies, not likely to be moved.
"The Packers' third-round pick from 2014 will already be fighting for a roster spot this preseason," writes Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports. "He may have been cut prior to last year if a hamstring injury hadn't allowed the Packers to squirrel him away on injured reserve for the season. Thornton looked like he lacked the size to play on the NFL level prior to that, and was bottom-dwelling on Green Bay's defensive tackle hierarchy. Word is he spent the offseason beefing up in the weight room and knows he is fighting for a job. Time will tell if he has done enough to turn it around in 2015. But not too much time - maybe the preseason and nothing else."
The Packers starting front looks fairly set right now with, left to right, Josh Boyd, Raji and Mike Daniels. The second group, comprised of Datone Jones, Guion and Bruce Gaston, looks pretty locked-in as well.
Meaning Thornton and Mike Pennel are currently very much on the outside looking in at a roster spot.
In the big picture for the Packers, Thornton's inability to provide even a slim glimmer of hope last year continues a disturbing recent trend for Thompson - defensive draft picks that flame out miserably before making even a small mark on the Green Bay organization.
Outside linebacker Nick Perry, drafted in the first-round in 2012, seems to be very much in the same precarious position as Thornton heading into this offseason.
While one season an NFL career does not make, Robinson is correct that Thornton's utterly worthless efforts his rookie year - in all reality, the offseason prior to his rookie year - combined with the ample depth up front for Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers, makes his future with the franchise a very cloudy one.
If he's going to stick around, Thornton will have to turn plenty of heads in training camp this summer. If not, he'll end up on the Packers trash heap, potentially alongside Perry, and all the other wasted talents unable to stick it out at the professional level.
