The first draft pick of the newly named Washington Commanders? Penn State wide receiver Jahan Dotson.
Washington traded back from No. 11 overall in the first round to No. 16, and still took Dotson higher than many draft experts expected. But wideouts were flying off the board starting at No. 8, with Drake London to Atlanta. That kicked off a run in which four of five picks were receivers, and Dotson ended up being the fifth pass-catcher selected — ahead of Arkansas star Treylon Burks.
Dotson, a 5-foot-11, 178-pound graduate of Nazareth High School in eastern Pennsylvania, improved his numbers each season at Penn State. He finished strong last year as a senior, catching 91 passes for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns.
The combine only helped Dotson’s draft stock, as he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds and had a 36-inch vertical leap. While his size is a concern in the NFL, he played big for the Nittany Lions, and could be a dynamic slot receiver as a pro.
Dotson is the first Penn State receiver to go in the first round since Bryant Johnson was the 17th overall pick by Arizona in 2003. The Nittany Lions have produced a first-rounder two years in a row, after Micah Parsons and Odafe Oweh went to Dallas and Baltimore, respectively, in 2021.
Now he’ll step into a crowded Commanders depth chart, featuring Terry McLaurin as the No. 1 target but also Curtis Samuel and Dyami Brown, a third-rounder last year. The new quarterback in Washington is Carson Wentz, and he’ll certainly have no shortage of options now that Dotson is in the fold.
