Before the season began, it appeared like a huge deal when the Eagles acquired Jahan Dotson from Washington for three draft picks, including a third-round pick.
Dotson appeared to be the icing on the cake, or at the very least, the icing on the cake, for quarterback Jalen Hurts, who already had an abundance of offensive talent on the Eagles.In his rookie season, the Commanders’ 16th overall pick in the 2022 draft caught 35 passes for 523 yards and seven touchdowns. He led the league with 14.9 yards per catch.
In 2023, his total number of catches increased to 49, but he only managed 518 yards with four touchdowns.
The Commanders boldly sold Dotson to a division opponent after deciding he was expendable during a squad change under first-year coach Dan Quinn. The Commanders’ acquisition of Olamide Zaccheaus, a native of New Jersey and a former standout player at St. Joseph’s Prep who was one of the Eagles’ 2023 extra receivers, added to the interest.
In the end, Zacceheaus produced more for the Commanders. He finished the regular season with a career-high 45 receptions for 506 yards and three touchdowns, ranking him as the team’s second-leading wide receiver. After the Commanders traded for San Francisco’s Deebo Samuel, he left in free agency for the Chicago Bears in the summer, despite contributing seven additional catches for 45 yards in the postseason.
We should also note that the Commanders acquired five-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil this summer by using the third-round selection they received for Dotson.
However, there are two ways to view Dotson’s first season with the Eagles.
Since it was the least successful personal season of his career, he could prefer to forget it in certain respects. However, he was a part of a Super Bowl champion and helped out in the playoffs, so it will always be a memorable aspect of his life.
Dotson, 25, set career lows by catching just 19 catches for 216 yards. For the first time in his career, he failed to score a touchdown as well.
He grabbed three catches for 53 yards and a touchdown during the postseason. Out of the three catches, two were enormous. He scored the first points of the Eagles’ 22–10 victory over the Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card round when Hurts caught an 11-yard touchdown pass on the team’s fourth offensive play.
When he hauled in a grab from Hurts along the right sideline in the first quarter, it looked like he also scored the first touchdown in the Eagles’ 40-22 thumping of the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. However, a review revealed that his 28-yard TD catch was reduced to a 27-yard catch since he was down at the 1-yard line. The blowout began after Hurts scored on the following play.
For several reasons, it is unjust to be overly critical of Dotson’s own work.The first person on the list was Saquon Barkley.
The Eagles scored a league-high 36.5 rushing plays per game after deciding early in the season that their star running back would be the mainstay of the offense. Additionally, 58.1% of the time, they ran the ball. In comparison to 2023, the Eagles had 88 fewer passing plays in 2024 and 115 less in 2023.
Being the team’s third receiver, even when they had more passing plays, was like being a backup catcher in the major leagues: there were very few opportunities.
Even if the Eagles use more on the pass in 2025 as teams try to slow down Barkley, Hurts will still throw most of the time to tight end Dallas Goedert, A.J. Brown, and DeVonta Smith.
On DraftKings, Saquon Barkley is projected to win the Offensive Player of the Year Award the following season at a price of +650. Our in-depth analysis of DraftKings Sportsbook offers instructions on how to use their website.
As the third-string wide receiver for the Eagles in 2022, Quez Watkins caught 33 catches for 354 yards and three touchdowns. 51 times, he was the target. Watkins, Zaccheaus, and seasoned player Julio Jones all shared the No. 3 spot in 2023. Together, the three caught 36 passes for 380 yards and six touchdowns. Together, they were targeted 60 times.
Dotson clearly received a lot less ball than the No. 3 receivers in prior years, as evidenced by the 33 targets he received last season.
Can he do anything else? During his two seasons in Washington, he did indeed demonstrate that. Will he? Probably not much more, which is why the Eagles chose not to select his rookie contract’s fifth-year option.
We appreciate your faith in us to deliver reliable journalism. Please think about subscribing to help us out.
The email address of Bob Brookover is [email protected].
