When the Eagles traded a third-round pick plus two seventh-round picks to the Washington Commanders for Jahan Dotson and a fifth-round pick, it was supposed to make Philadelphia's offense unstoppable.
Suddenly, the Eagles had a top-5 WR1, WR2, and WR3 in their respective lines, which, when coupled with a top-5 tight end in Dallas Goedert and superstar free agent addition Saquon Barkley, looked like the makings of a truly elite offensive unit under new coordinator Kellen Moore.
And yet, through 10 games, Dotson really hasn't looked like an elite WR3 or even playable more often than not with the PSU product catching just over 50 percent of the passes thrown his way for 98 yards and no touchdowns.
What gives? Why isn't Dotson playing at a high level, or at least at the same level he produced at in Washington from 2022-23? Well, reporters asked head coach Nick Sirianni that very question in his first media session of Week 11, who let it be known that the difference really isn't that complicated: Dotson is earning fewer targets as the Eagles' WR3 than Washington's WR2.
“I think he’s done a nice job. Obviously, the last two weeks he’s made some big-time plays, explosive plays for us. You know, coming off each game, he hasn’t got as many touches as he has in the past, but I think that’s the nature of the third receiver here,” Sirianni told reporters. “Again, DeVonta and A.J. are going to be the two receivers that get the most thrown to them.
“That’s always tricky because you have to be able to take advantage of the opportunity you get. Jahan is used to in college and even at Washington five, six, seven targets a game. Maybe you’re only going to get one, two, three targets a game here. What are you going to do with those opportunities?”
Interesting stuff, right? Well wait, it gets even better, as Sirianni still had more to say about his new WR3.
Nick Sirianni still believes in Jahan Dotson as the Eagles WR3
Continuing his comments on Dotson, Sirianni noted that while his WR3 isn't getting big production, the head coach is still proud of his work on the field as he's doing what he can to contribute.
“I think the guys that take advantage of their opportunities are the ones that get rewarded with more opportunities. So certainly, a case with Jahan is Jalen continues to trust him as the coaching staff continues to trust him. But it’s really a tribute to him and the player and the person he is. That’s not easy to have all those opportunities and then all of a sudden not.
“It comes down to moving on, play the next play. Yeah, you might not have gotten the play here, but you never know when the play is coming to you and to be able to make it and take advantage of those one, two, three opportunities you get a game,” Sirianni told reporters.
“Jahan, the last couple weeks, has done a really nice job of that. What’s unnoticed probably about him is when he runs off, the space on the field he can create with his vertical speed. He has a handful in the last couple of games, too, of really nice blocks that have set some runs off and some bubbles and some screens and stuff like that off.
“So we’re pleased how he’s playing. He’s playing tough; he’s playing physical; he’s playing and taking advantage of those opportunities. So he needs to continue that. We expect him to continue that. I’m really excited that he’s part of this football team.”
You really have to hand it to Sirianni. He is correct on that last part as Dotson has caught both of his targets for 63 yards after going shut out in Weeks 7-8.
While he would need to go on an absolute run to finish out the season with 520 receiving yards, his average in Washington, as he would need to average over 50 yards to get there, if Dotson is good for a few catches a game, it could do wonders for the Eagles' offense moving forward.
