The Washington Commanders made a surprising move to send Jahan Dotson to division rival Philadelphia. A player who benefitted greatly from this trade was Luke McCaffrey, who the Commanders selected in the third round of this year's draft.
McCaffrey previously had been spending time taking reps with the backups and third-stringers in the first two preseason games and that made sense considering he was a third-round rookie. Well, now that Dotson is off to the City of Brotherly Love, it appears that McCaffrey could be moving up the depth chart.
Lynnell Willingham tweeted during Thursday's practice that the Commanders rookie wideout was getting to take reps as the WR3 with the starters. Willingham did note that the Commanders rotate but this is huge news for McCaffrey as he looks to make a positive impression as a rookie.
Could Luke McCaffrey end up starting for the Commanders now that Jahan Dotson is gone?
What we know for sure about the Commanders wide receiver room is that Terry McLaurin is WR1 and that's not up for debate. The other starting options on OurLad's depth chart are Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus. McCaffrey is listed as the backup behind Brown.
Before getting drafted by Washington, McCaffrey spent the first two years of his collegiate career playing quarterback for Nebraska. He transferred to Rice for the 2021 season and played quarterback for one year before making the switch to wide receiver for his final two years of college eligibility.
McCaffrey had nearly 1,000 yards receiving and 13 touchdowns during his final season at Rice and proved that he could be a compelling weapon at the professional level. The Commanders agreed, spending a third-round pick on him, and now might give him a chance to start with the team as a rookie.
In all liklihood, McCaffrey doesn't start for the team right out of the gates but he has one more presason game to prove what he can do to the coaching staff. Let's hope he can become a dependable weapon for rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.
