Do not adjust your displays on your desktop or laptop monitors. There’s no need to restart your cell phones. There have been no misprints. This is not a drill. You’ve read the headline correctly. JJ Arcega-Whiteside will play a new position for the Philadephia Eagles in 2022… tight end.
Stop laughing. We’re serious.
According to Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer, the man we last clocked at six-foot-two and 225 pounds has reportedly put on weight, and he’s embraced the idea of a position switch. Just like that, the battle at tight end that we were expecting to spend some time talking about has gotten a lot more interesting.
Here’s a look at how JJ Arcega-Whiteside’s position switch affects the WR corps and TE room.
The Eagles currently have six tight ends on the roster now. They figure to carry no more than three into the coming regular season. Here are the names: JJAW, Dallas Goedert, Noah Togiai, Jack Stoll, Richard Rodgers, and Tyree Jackson.
That means there are now eight wide receivers on the roster: Quez Watkins, Devon Allen, Deon Cain, Greg Ward, Zach Pascal, John Hightower, Jalen Reagor, and DeVonta Smith.
This doesn’t figure to affect draft strategy, and it shouldn’t. The Eagles have been rumored to take a wide receiver as early as Round 1 for quite some time. If not then, they’ll most certainly take a wideout at some point.
They’d also be wise to invest some draft capital into the tight end position. Goedert can be one of the NFL’s best and brightest, but past him, there are more questions than answers. The coming selection meeting will have obvious stars and possible risers on all three days.
Names like Trey McBride, Greg Dulcich, Isaiah Likely, Cade Otton, Jalen Wydermyer, Charlie Kolar, and Jake Ferguson come to mind. All would make the perfect ‘Robin’ for Godert’s ‘Batman’, but for now JJAW is the story.
Philly’s ‘enforcer’, known more for his blocking than his ability to catch the football, now moves to a spot on the roster where that might actually be acceptable. With the occasional pass thrown his way, he can still cause issues for defensive backs who might be too small and linebackers who might be too slow. First, he has to make the roster though.
That wasn’t a guarantee a few hours ago (which is, more than likely, the reason for the change), and despite the position switch, guess what? That still may not be a guarantee now. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.