Philadelphia Eagles: What role will DeSean Jackson play in 2020?
By David Esser
What will DeSean Jackson’s role be with the Philadelphia Eagles this year?
Since rejoining the Philadelphia Eagles in 2019, wide receiver DeSean Jackson hasn’t had the smoothest of rides. He logged just 65 total snaps during the regular season last year, missing a majority of the season as he battled with a torn abdominal. Despite being the Eagles’ primary addition on offense, Jackson finished the year with just 9 catches for 159 yards.
To make matters even worse, Jackson was very recently involved in a fairly serious off the field incident this summer. Posting quotes on his Instagram highlighting bouts of antisemitism from Adolf Hitler, many pondered if the veteran receiver would even still be on the Eagles roster come week one.
Ultimately, it appears like Jeffrey Lurie and Howie Roseman opted to go with education and open dialogue over simply cutting Jackson. “DJax” has long been a beloved figure in the Philadelphia community, and the Eagles front office seemed more disappointed and confused with him as opposed to being angry.
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Barring anymore unforeseen bouts of antisemitism, it looks like Jackson is going to be on the roster this season.. He was acquired last offseason to be the team’s focal deep threat, and that likely hasn’t changed much a year later. Carson Wentz and Jackson showed immense amounts of chemistry during their limited time playing together in 2019, and that’s something the coaching staff would obviously like to capitalize on moving forward.
When the idea of cutting Jackson began being tossed around, fans were quick to point out that the Eagles did in fact add quite a bit of speed this offseason. They drafted Jalen Reagor, John Hightower, and Quez Watkins, and traded for veteran speedster Marquise Goodwin. From an outside view looking in, it appears Jackson could be replaceable.
In reality, that simply isn’t the case. Despite struggling with injuries at times, Jackson is legitimately one of the best deep threats in NFL history. His understanding of route running and how to properly “stretch the field” is not something most rookies can learn overnight.
Despite being 33 years of age, Jackson is still going to be a day one starter in Doug Pederson’s offense. He might not put up 1,000 yards this season like he used to day back in the day, but if the Eagles didn’t think he’d play a big role this season, he would likely not be on the roster at all.
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While the rookie receivers the team drafted all look promising in their own regard, the Philadelphia Eagles are still going to need some serious production out of Jackson in 2020. Whether it’s for 16 games or even just for 10 games, they’re definitely going to require more than the nine catches he had last year.