The Washington Commanders need a No. 2 wide receiver to emerge, and “very conistent” Olamide Zaccheaus could overtake struggling former first-round draft pick Jahan Dotson in the battle for a starting role.
Zaccheaus played for head coach Dan Quinn with the Atlanta Falcons and rated a mention from his boss as somebody who has had a “good camp” for the Commanders. That’s according to Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post, who also noted Quinn revealed the Commanders “are ‘in the middle of’ the search for WR2. A lot of players in the mix.”
Jhabvala’s update was doubled down on by ESPN’s John Keim. He reported “Dotson has not emerged. Zaccheaus has been very consistent all summer.”
Zaccheaus becoming the starter alongside Washington’s lone marquee threat Terry McLaurin would have two worrying implications.
Olamide Zaccheaus Emerging in Weak WR Rotation
The Commanders’ wide receiver rotation is weak beyond McLaurin. He’s tallied four-straight 1,000-yard campaigns, but there is precious little playmaking talent sharing space with McLaurin on the depth chart.
Not when former third-round pick Dyami Brown has failed to deliver on his potential and remains a viable trade candidate. Nor when the Commanders felt compelled to sign a 33-year-old who’s been away from football for six years just to add another option at a suspect position.
Zaccheaus could fix an underrated problem for Washington, but it would require a significant leap in the undrafted free agent’s on-field production. The former Falcon and Philadelphia Eagles wideout has never tallied more than 61 targets and 40 catches in a season, but he boasts qualities the Commanders can use.
Notably, Zaccheaus can get open between the numbers and is dynamic after the catch. He showed off both traits with this grab against the New York Jets in Week 1 of the preseason, highlighted by “Keeping Up With The Commanders” host Mason Kinnahan.
Deceptive play speed, above-average after-catch skills and juice as a returner can give Zaccheaus the inside track to a key role this season. If that role is as a No. 2 wide receiver, Dotson’s career in Washington will have reached its lowest point.
Jahan Dotson Still Sliding
Dotson remains well short of living up to the billing as the 16th pick in the 2022 NFL draft. He’s hovering dangerously close to bust status.
Nobody wants the draft bust label, but Dotson would earn the moniker after achieving only modest production. He tallied a mere 523 yards as a rookie, but Dotson’s already mediocre numbers somehow declined, even in a pass-happy offense called by now-former coordinator Eric Bieniemy, when the Commanders threw the ball a league-high 636 times.
Dotson totalled only 518 yards and averaged just 31 yards per game. Middling statistics like those are why the Commanders are casting a wide net looking for the right partner for McLaurin.
Unfortunately, there’s only modest talent at the disposal of Quinn and new offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. As Rotoworld’s Zachary Krueger put it, “Per the analytics, the Commanders’ WR2 search looks like an absolute mid-off.”
There’s room for the Commanders to add some more playmaking potential to the competition. Perhaps even a former first-round pick who remains a genuine vertical threat.
Alternatively, Quinn and Kingsbury could trust this year’s third-rounder Luke McCaffrey to make the grade. Or else, Quinn will be left to keep faith in Zaccheaus.
