*Walt taking 2014 and 2018 |
Charlie Campbell, Senior Draft Analyst |
Scouts Compare Dotson to Elijah Moore
Updated Oct. 1, 2021By Charlie Campbell. Follow Charlie on Twitter @draftcampbell.
Early in the 2021 college football season, Penn State senior Jahan Dotson has one of the most dangerous and productive receivers in the nation. He has caught 27 passes for 362 yards and four touchdowns through four games. Dotson could have much larger numbers than that due to being open for other long passes, but those have been missed opportunities thanks to inaccurate passes from Nittany Lions quarterback Sean Clifford. Dotson is definitely helping himself with NFL evaluators this season, and some NFL team sources say Dotson is drawing comparisons to former Ole Miss wide receiver Elijah Moore.
Throughout the 2021 NFL Draft process, there were consistent projections of Moore going late in the first round, but he ended up slipping to early in the second round. Similar to Moore, Dotson (5-11, 184) lacks size, but Dotson is a speed receiver who is a threat to produce big plays anytime he touches the ball. Moore was a fringe first-rounder, and Dotson is being projected into the same range for the 2022 NFL Draft. Team sources do not see Dotson being as fast as Jaylen Waddle, who went 6th overall last April.
“I see Jahan similar to Elijah Moore,” said an AFC director of college scouting. “He’s not quite as short-area explosive or as long speed fast as Waddle, but Jahan is a good player.”
Dotson has his senior year off to an excellent start, and if he continues to produce and puts together good pre-draft workouts, he could maybe sneak into the first round. If not, Dotson will probably be a high second-rounder in the 2022 NFL Draft.
