3 Realistic expectations for Eagles wide receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside

Expect for JJ Arcega-Whiteside to surprise a few Eagles fans in Year 2.

It was right around this time last season that you could feel a mini-buzz growing in the Philadelphia Eagles fan base. Much of the conversation surrounded their NFL Draft class as it does every season, and even though they traded their final selection to acquire the services of Hassan Ridgeway, two topics were among the five or so that kept coming up. Four of their five selections were spent on defense, and, if we’re being honest, no one had fawned over JJ Arcega-Whiteside during the draft process.

Philly’s new wideout had hauled in 135 grabs for 2,219 yards and 28 trips to the end zone during a 33-game run with the Stanford Cardinal. Comparisons were being made to another big-bodied target that Eagles fans were already familiar with, Alshon Jeffery. Arcega-Whiteside had even stated that he had idolized Jeffery and was looking forward to playing with him, but when the lights came on and JJ threw on the number 19, something became evident very early.

JJ wasn’t anywhere close to being the caliber of player that Jeffery was.

That’s all behind him now (we hope). The page has turned. It’s Year 2, and any conversation dedicated to Philly’s six-foot-two, 225-pound target normally revolves around the same subject. Can he turn it around and prove the second-round selection used on him was worth it? Here’s an attempt to answer that question and three reasonable expectations for “19” in Year 2.