The 1st ever selection for the Washington Commanders turned out to be a WR after all. However, it was not necessarily the one everyone was expecting. Dotson was my 5th rated WR on the board and as it turned out, he was the 5th WR selected but no one could have predicted how he got here. The Commanders decided to trade back with the Saints from pick #11 to #16 and acquired up the Saints compensatory 3rd round pick (#98) and a 4th round pick (#120 overall), which is decent haul. The consensus from the pundits was the Saints were trading up to select a QB since they traded away their 2023 1st round pick for that #16th pick this year. However, they shocked the nation and selected WR Chris Olave there at #11, causing a chain reaction where then the Lions traded up to #12 to select WR Jameson Williams. Suddenly, two of the players the Commanders presumably thought may still fall to #16 were taken. Next, the Eagles moved up two spots to #13 to select Jordan Davis which caused the Ravens to select the last player the Commanders were likely hoping to get, Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton at #14.
Nobody (myself included), had Jahan Dotson going before #22 to the Green Bay Packers (most had him somewhere between picks 25-40 – his agent included!) so naturally, the pick wasn’t very well received by the Commanders fans on social media, who all claimed it was a massive reach. It’s hard to discount that sentiment considering Dotson was not linked to the Commanders whatsoever. He was not one of the players invited to a ‘top 30 visit’ at the Commanders facility so the speculation is, Rivera and company panicked after they missed out on Olave, Williams, and Hamilton. In the post-draft interview, Dotson mentioned he only had one meeting with the Commanders and it was a phone call from the WR coach. However, Rivera and the Marty’s claim he was a guy they had a 1st round grade on as well as a lot of interest in so they wanted to keep it a secret. When asked why the Commanders front office didn’t have more meetings with Dotson, Mayhew responded, “you usually meet with people you have questions about”. Badass.
Were there better players on the board? Sure, you could make a case for Washington CB Trent McDuffie, edge rusher Jermaine Johnson or Arkansas WR Trevon Burks. However, they front office wanted to add another deep threat to this offense and Dotson will certainly be that guy.
Skinny: If you like Jameson Williams, Garrett Wilson or Chris Olave, you will love Jahan Dotson. He stands 5’11” and weighs 178lbs so he’s not going to run you over, but good luck keeping up with him. His route-running isn’t as polished as Olave or Wilson, but he isn’t far behind. Many believe he will be a slot receiver at the next level but he only lined up in slot 15% of the time at Penn State. I also don’t understand why everyone is knocking Dotson for his size. Devonta Smith is 6’0″ and weighed 175lbs at his combine. He looked just fine to me. Heck, Garrett Wilson is only 5lbs heavier and no one is talking about his size.
Dotson has some of the best hands in the draft, which is something I may have overlooked during my initial evaluation. Of the 2021 season where he had 91 receptions for 1,182 yards and 12 TDs, he was only tagged with two dropped passes. He takes catching the football very seriously, quoted saying he goes after the football “like it’s a million dollars”. He is known to carry a football with him everywhere he goes as well. He even carried a football around the Commanders practice facilities on day one and when asked about, he said “it’s a little piece of him that reminds him of home”.
He has a heck of good catch radius, showing no problems with high pointing the football in traffic or making acrobatic one handed catches on the sidelines or out bounds. His QB play at Penn State was below average to put it kindly. He was constantly a victim of inaccurate and underthrown passes but he still made the plays. I’ll also point out unlike the Ohio State WRs, Dotson was a one man show for the Nittany Lions, always facing the other teams best cover corner and constantly having a safety over the top or being double teamed. But again, he still made the plays.
Scouts think he may actually be faster than his 4.43 40 time but that is still pretty fast (only .04 seconds slower than Wilson/ Olave). Six of Dotson’s 12 TDs were from 40 yards out or further so if he gets a step on you, it’s over. Dotson also has experience returning punts, earning 3rd-team all league with 7.9 yards per punt return which adds even more to this picks value.
It will be exciting to see how he is used in the Commanders new look offense. Dotson lined up in the slot on only 15% of the time at Penn State, so I expect him to be the WR2 opposite of Terry at first. With his quickness, he should have no issue lining up at slot, giving this offense that much more versatility especially if Curtis Samuel comes back fully healthy. With the speed of those three (four if you account for Dyami Brown) plus the big arm of Carson Wentz, this Commanders offense now has the potential to explode next year.
The Skins Skinny 