The Philadelphia Eagles selected JJ Arcega-Whiteside with the 57th overall pick this past April, who will bring plenty of size and physicality to the wide receiver corps in Philly.
Arcega-Whiteside will look to further improve one of the most explosive offenses in the National Football League in his rookie tenure. Philadelphia revamped their offense after a decline from their 2017/18 Super Bowl-winning campaign, acquiring Jordan Howard from Chicago and signing former Eagle, DeSean Jackson, to add more speed on the outside. Philly also used their first-round draft pick to bolster their offensive line, adding OT Andre Dillard and one of their second-rounders to take Miles Sanders out of Penn State to challenge Howard for snaps in the backfield.
Arcega-Whiteside joins a receiving room that oozes with talent, pairing up with the likes of Alshon Jeffery, Nelson Agholor, DeSean Jackson, and Mack Hollins. Whiteside’s game most similarly correlates to that of Jeffrey’s, a large, physical frame that can go up and get it when given the chance. Standing at 6’3″ and weighing 225 pounds, Arcega-Whiteside will look to provide a mismatch on the outsides, and in the red-zone, when lined up opposite of Jeffery against the defense’s #2 cornerback.
On paper, this sounds like a match made in heaven for Arcega-Whiteside, but let’s dive deeper to look at this from a fantasy perspective for the upcoming season.
Made in Stanford
After not recording a reception during his freshman year, Arcega-Whiteside tallied 135 receptions over the next three seasons, good for 2,219 yards and 28 touchdowns. Half of his touchdowns and nearly half of his yards, 1,059, came during his senior campaign alone, where he averaged 16.8 YPC.
Arcega-Whiteside has never been much of a volume receiver, only two games during 2018 with 8+ receptions, but his vertical ability in the red-zone and along the sidelines has made him a touchdown machine. His 14 touchdowns on 63 receptions in 2018 equate to just 4.5 receptions per touchdown. This was also happening in a fairly low scoring offense at Stanford, who finished ranked in the bottom half of the country in terms of points per game.
Whiteside finished the year leading the conference in receiving touchdowns while being seventh in receptions. Having a big, physical threat in an offense is always key, but in addition to Jeffery, Ertz, and Goedert, Arcega-Whiteside could help turn Philadelphia into the most lethal red-zone offense in football.
Role in Philadelphia
To start the season, Whiteside will most likely be listed as WR4 on the Eagles depth chart. Philadelphia will shift between a 12 personnel (1 RB, 2 TE, 2 WR) and an 11 personnel (1 RB, 1 TE, 3 WR) for the majority of their snaps, leaning towards the 12 more often than not. That switch between offensive personnel will depend on the down and distance, switching out Goedert as the TE2 and Agholor in the slot. Whiteside will be the first outside receiver to come off the bench to give Jeffery/Jackson a couple snaps off or in empty backfield packages with four receivers.
Arcega-Whiteside will see most of his work in the red-zone to give Philadelphia more playmaking ability in the air. Already in Eagles off-season training, reports from NJ.com have said that Whiteside only continues to impress the coaching staff in red-zone situations. The birds will have mismatches all across the field inside-the-20 in their 12 personnel, with both tight ends, Jeffery, and Whiteside all 6’3″ or taller.
Barring injuries from Jeffery and Jackson, Arcega-Whiteside will be used in specific packages/down-and-distance situations throughout the season. However, both starting receivers are prone to miss a game or two, with Jeffery having a 49.7% chance of injury during the 2019 season and Jackson a little higher at 59.3%, according to Sports Injury Predictor.
So, what does this mean from a fantasy perspective?
Fantasy Outlook
Arcega-Whiteside’s value is currently sitting around WR96 in standard leagues, which is an ADP of about 282. Owned in 4% of ESPN leagues, Whiteside is not someone you’re going to draft unless you find yourself in a deeper league or you want to hold on to Jeffery’s backup. In dynasty leagues, Whiteside is sitting around WR60, and his value will surely rise throughout training camp.
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As it stands, Whiteside is just a late-round flier that you might have a good feeling about. There will be some weeks where he can be a quality plug-and-play, Eagles receivers have the 3rd ranked easiest schedule for the 2019 season according to FantasyPros, so he does have some hidden value to his name. If an injury does pop up to Jeffery or Jackson, I believe Whiteside will be someone you can have confidence in rostering.
2019 Season Predictions: 31 Receptions, 428 Yards (13.8 YPC), 6 TD’s
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