Washington Commanders: Grading the Jahan Dotson selection

The Washington Commanders selected wide receiver Jahan Dotson in the 2022 NFL Draft after trading down to the 16th pick

The Washington Commanders originally had the 11th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. However, they ended up trading down with the New Orleans Saints.

Washington gave up their 11th pick. In return, they got the Saints’ 16th overall pick, as well as a third (98) and a fourth (120).

With that 16th pick, the Washington Commanders selected wide receiver Jahan Dotson out of Penn State. Let’s break it down and grade the move.

Jahan Dotson can be an impact player for the Washington Commanders

Okay, first off let’s get this out of the way immediately. Dotson went to Nazareth High School in Pennsylvania. That just so happens to be where I went. I’ll try to be unbiased about all this, but I can’t pretend there isn’t some insane hype.

Doston was an absolute stud at Penn State. He has insane speed and is a solid route runner. Despite his size (5’11”), he can absolutely go up and get the ball. He’s made plenty of impressive receptions that make you forget he’s “undersized”.

Just how good was he last season? Dotson finished 2021 with 91 receptions for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns. Despite teams game-planning for him, you rarely saw the wide receiver get put into a box. He was always going to get his numbers.

How does he fit on the Commanders though? Actually pretty perfectly. Terry McLaurin is elite. One of the best receivers in football. What do you have after that though?

Curtis Samuel could be great, he’s shown it in the past. But he also had a miserable year last season that saw a hefty majority of it spent injured. Dyami Brown was a rookie last season and has potential. But his drops and route running issues were not encouraging.

After that, you’ve got Cam Sims. He’s had his moments but is a depth guy. Dax Milne is depth as well.

And it could get even worse with McLaurin wanting a new contract. If things don’t work out and you end up losing him, this would be a dire situation. So getting someone that can compliment McLaurin and possibly replace him if he walks is extremely important.

As for how he could do in year one, say what you want about Carson Wentz but he has a strong arm. Washington now has a ton of deep threats that could play perfectly for that.

It’s necessary to remember that Dotson isn’t just a deep threat though, he can get you receptions all over the field.

So Washington got another potentially elite receiver. But they also added another third and fourth in the draft. It’s hard not to absolutely love what they did here. And yes we’re counting the trade as part of the grade.

Grade: A