Super Bowl Champion Wide Receiver Labeled “Worst” Free Agent Mistake During NFL Offseason

This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

Former Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Jahan Dotson played a helpful role during the team’s Super Bowl run in 2024. But one NFL analyst now believes his new contract with the Atlanta Falcons was a bad move.

Dotson signed a two-year, $15 million contract with Atlanta in March after spending the 2024 season with the Eagles. ESPN analyst Bill Barnwell recently called it the worst move of the offseason.

Barnwell questioned why Atlanta gave Dotson $10 million in guaranteed money after four inconsistent NFL seasons. He pointed to Dotson’s struggles to put up steady production with both the Washington Commanders and the Eagles.

“It wasn’t necessarily a surprise to see the new Falcons regime move on from Darnell Mooney after an injury-hit 2025 season, but I’m not enthused about how they chose to replace him,” Barnwell wrote.

Barnwell also argued that Dotson never developed into a reliable target. He noted that Dotson averaged just 0.9 yards per route run across four seasons. According to Barnwell, that ranked 79th among 80 receivers with at least 1,000 routes during that stretch.

“You can chalk that up to the presence of A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith in the lineup alongside Dotson over the past two seasons, but being able to command targets by getting open is a skill,” Barnwell wrote. “Dotson wasn’t able to do that in Washington or Philadelphia.”

Dotson Delivered When The Eagles Needed Him Most

Eagles traded for Jahan Dotson before the 2024 season in a deal with the Washington Commanders. Philadelphia gave up a 2025 third-round draft pick and received Dotson along with a 2025 fifth-round pick.

Dotson did not put up big numbers during the regular season with the Eagles, but he made important plays during the playoffs and earned praise for helping the team win a championship.

He caught a touchdown pass in his first playoff game against the Green Bay Packers. He also made an impact in the Eagles’ 40-22 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX.

Dotson finished the Super Bowl with two catches for 42 yards. His biggest play came in the first quarter when he made a diving 28-yard catch. Officials first called it a touchdown, but later overturned the decision. Even so, the play helped set up the Eagles’ first score on a 1-yard touchdown run by Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts.

Some Eagles fans still view the trade as a success because of those playoff moments. “Two years later, Dotson finished with a total of 37 catches for 478 yards and a touchdown, plus a solid playoff run on the way to a Super Bowl. From that perspective alone, the trade paid off,” Fly Eagles Fly Bets posted on X in February after Philadelphia’s title run.