Philadelphia Eagles: Slot reps make sense for J.J. Arcega-Whiteside

J.J. Arcega-Whiteside has been receiving snaps in the slot in OTAs, a move that makes sense for the Philadelphia Eagles rookie wideout.

The Philadelphia Eagles provided Carson Wentz with another weapon in the passing game in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft when they drafted J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, who may need to prove his versatility to earn snaps early in his career.

Arcega-Whiteside joins a talented receiving corps that includes the likes of Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson and Nelson Agholor and, according to Mike Kaye of NJ.com, has been given reps in the slot during OTAs.

Jackson and Agholor appear better fits in the slot on the face of it, but using former Stanford star Arcega-Whiteside there actually makes a great deal of sense.

The ‘big slot’ receiver role is on the rise in the NFL, with physically imposing wideouts with frames akin to that of the 6’2″ and 225-pound Arcega-Whiteside being utilized as de facto extra move tight ends.

There was pre-draft talk of Hakeem Butler being deployed in such a fashion but Arcega-Whiteside is also suited to the role.

Possessing underrated foot quickness and speed, Arcega-Whiteside can engineer separation when working over the middle, where his ability to use his frame to box out defenders is a significant advantage.

In Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert the Eagles have one of the better young tight end pairings in the NFL. Many may expect their presence to limit Arcega-Whiteside’s opportunities to receive snaps in the slot as a rookie, but Eagles head coach Doug Pederson is likely to be very eager to find ways to get him on the field having been intrigued by his size and dominance in jump-ball situations, according to 247Sports.

"“Just impressed with his ability to elevate. He’s big. He’s tall. He’s athletic. Good speed. Good hands. All the things you see on film just kind of catches your eye, and then you just continue to watch more tape.” – Doug Pederson."

Arcega-Whiteside’s skill set is one that should make him a dependable target over the middle in the intermediate areas and in the red zone. Having another receiver who can excel in those sections of the field is, theoretically at least, a great way to ease the burden on Wentz, who heads into the season under huge pressure to perform following Nick Foles’ departure.

He may have a queue of receivers in front of him on the depth chart but Arcega-Whiteside has traits that are very valuable to his quarterback and, if the Eagles believe it will take putting him in the slot to get those skills on the field, then they should definitely explore doing so.