Thornton logged a season-high 54 (of a possible 57) snaps on offense in Thursday's 21-18 win over the Steelers, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.
With fellow WRs Demario Douglas (concussion), DeVante Parker (knee) and Kayshon Boutte (shoulder) all inactive, Thornton drew the start alongside JuJu Smith-Schuster, who led the team with 90 receiving yards. Thornton, on the other hand, finished with three catches for 17 yards on five targets, failing to take advantage of a big opportunity. With New England's next game coming 10 days after Thursday's win -- Dec. 17 against the Chiefs -- the team's wideout corps could be less thinned-out for Week 15, a context that likely would leave Thornton with less playing time.