Fantasy Football: Will Commanders WR Jahan Dotson Make an Impact in Rookie Year?

Rookies can often be boom or bust.

Jeremy Brener | Jul 7, 2022

A lot of attention in the Washington Commanders wide receiver room ... both on the field and in fantasy football ... will go to Terry McLaurin, who recently signed a three-year, $71 million extension with the team.

But teams and fantasy owners could make a mistake this season overlooking rookie wide receiver Jahan Dotson.

Dotson was drafted with the 16th pick in April's NFL Draft, the fifth wide receiver selected behind Drake London (Atlanta Falcons), Garrett Wilson (New York Jets), Chris Olave (New Orleans Saints) and Jameson Williams (Detroit Lions).

Dotson has looked strong in minicamp and OTAs so far and should be the team's slot receiver going into the season. Last year, slot receiver Cooper Kupp ended up having the greatest season for a wide receiver all-time.

Now, I'm not saying Dotson will have a Kupp-like season in 2022, but rookies have had a lot of success in recent years. In the past three seasons, a rookie has finished top-10 in scoring among wide receivers. A.J. Brown finished 10th in 2019, Justin Jefferson finished 5th in 2020 and Ja'Marr Chase finished 3rd in 2021.

McLaurin could grab a lot of those targets in the Washington offense, but there could be plenty of targets for Dotson to grab as well ... enough to make him draftable in redraft leagues and startable as a flex play in 2022.

As a dynasty option, Dotson should be one of the first players off the board given his proven durability and opportunity to grow in a rising offense.

Published Jul 7, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.