With the 16th pick in the 2022 NFL draft, the Washington Commanders select Penn State WR Jahan Dotson.
GRADE: B.
This isn’t the flashiest pick, and there are those who will criticize the team for moving down when they could have had Jameson Williams with the 11th pick. But Dotson is an underrated professional receiver from Day 1, and when Carson Wentz is your quarterback, the more professionalism, the better.
Mark Schofield’s scouting report:
Height: 5’11” (22nd) Weight: 178 (7th)
40-Yard Dash: 4.43 seconds (74th)
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: 36 inches (57th)
Broad Jump: 10’1″ (46th)
3-Cone Drill: 7.28 seconds (8th)
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
Bio: Jahan Dotson attended two different high schools as a prep player, spending his freshman, sophomore and senior years at Nazareth Area High School in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, while attending the Peddie School in Hightstown, New Jersey his junior year. His return to Nazareth put him in position to set some school records for the Blue Eagles, as he left Nazareth as their career leader in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns.
After initially committing to UCLA to play football, he changed course and decided to stay close to home and play for Penn State. He appeared in eight games as a true freshman in 2018, and started all 13 of Penn State’s games the following season.
2020 was his breakout campaign, as he caught 52 passes for 884 yards and eight touchdowns in just nine games. This past year, he caught 91 passes for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns, and set a school record when he caught a touchdown in six-straight games.
Stat to Know: While his size might lead you to believe he is a slot receiver only, Penn State used him almost exclusively on the outside. In 2020 for example, only 45 of his 648 snaps came from the slot per Pro Football Focus.
Strengths: Dotson is an experienced receiver who has spent the bulk of his college career playing on the outside. As such, he has developed a release package that gives him the ability to separate from press-aligned defenders as he comes off the line. With foot quickness, change-of-direction skills and a hand swat package to boot, Dotson can get open early and give his quarterback an option as the play unfolds.
Dotson also has great feel for the position, whether in terms of finding soft spots in zone coverage, separating late in the play in scramble-drill situations, or working back to the quarterback to make himself a target. On this play against Illinois, Dotson runs a wheel route that takes him nearly 20 yards downfield. But he works back to his quarterback, presenting himself as the best option on the play:
Dotson also has no fear attacking the middle of the field, even when the throw is off-target and he knows that the big hit is coming:
Dotson is also explosive after the catch, and has the ability to turn quick throws into big plays. His catch-and-run touchdown against Maryland is a prime example:
This long touchdown broke a 14-14 tie early in the fourth quarter, and is a great example of his ability after the catch.
Weaknesses: Despite playing primarily on the outside, Dotson’s best usage in the NFL might be in the slot. There were moments on film where longer cornerbacks were able to control him off the snap if they were aggressive and took the fight to him with a jam or a club technique. There were also moments on film where Dotson did a little too much with his footwork and route-running, and the quarterback was forced to double-clutch while he was waiting for the receiver to get into his break. As we have seen with some other options in this class, sometimes less is more.
Conclusion: His usage at Penn State gives Dotson the chance to play on the outside and in the slot at the next level. Teams that use receivers interchangeably — looking in the general direction of Josh McDaniels and the Las Vegas Raiders — might love that versatility. He might need to round out his release package and add some upper-body strength to function at his best on the outside in the NFL, but the foundation is there.
Comparison: The team over at Bleacher Report compared him to Tyler Lockett, and that comparison feels right to me.