Philadelphia Eagles: Trading JJ Arcega-Whiteside for Jamaal Williams is a win-win
Jamaal Williams does what JJAW don’t for the Philadelphia Eagles.
JJ Arcega-Whiteside might just be the least popular player on the Philadelphia Eagles.
Sure, technically he’s coming off his rookie season, with five starts and 22 receptions to his name, but that hasn’t stopped a minor mob of would-be scouts from throwing up ‘bust’ like Tobias Harris throws up bricks.
Hypothetically speaking, let’s say they are right. Let’s assume Howie Roseman’s decision to draft not one, not two, but three speedy wide receivers in the 2020 NFL Draft was an indictment on JJAW’s lack of development and that it’d simply be better to move off the 23-year-old to save a roster spot for players like Greg Ward, Quez Watkins, and John Hightower. If that’s the case, what, or who could the Eagles expect to land in a trade for the ex-Stanford Cardinal?
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How about ball trucking, anime loving, fourth-year running back out of BYU: Jamaal Williams.
The 134th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, Williams has rapidly found himself a man without a role in Green Bay. Sure, technically Williams was drafted before fellow Packers rusher Aaron Jones, but the former fifth-round pick has thoroughly outpaced the player selected 48 spots earlier and has averaged 23 more carries a season as a result. With Williams set to enter the fourth year of his rookie contract, the Packers made their intentions abundantly clear by using their third-round pick on 250-pound bowling ball AJ Dillon out of Boston College, a 21-year-old version of LeGarrette Blount.
Was that pick a particularly good one? Based on where Dillon was being taken in many pre-draft mocks I’d venture to say no, but hey, not my pick, not my problem.
With Dillon likely to soak up the brunt of the Packers’ early-down snaps, it would only be logical to assume the team’s front office could be willing to flip the former fourth-round pick for a better fitting piece, namely any wide receiver who plays wide receiver from the wide receiver position.
That’s right, despite fielding one of the worst receiving corps in the NFL outside of longtime starter Davante Adams – seriously, Aaron Jones finished out the season third on the team in receiving yards – the Packers opted against using any of their draft picks on a wide receiver, instead selecting Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in the first round and a ton of auxiliary pieces thereafter. Even if JJAW is far from a sure thing, he’d immediately enter the 2020 NFL season as the second-highest drafted receiver on the team’s roster with a potential starting role fairly up for grabs.
And as for the Eagles? Well, I’d say the addition of Williams is rather obvious.
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With no new blood at the running back position added to the team outside of UDFAs Mark Warren and Adrian Killins, the Eagles are banking on a relatively inexperienced corps of rushers headlined by should-have-been Rookie of the Year Miles Sanders and Saints practice squad signee Boston Scott. Could Corey Clement fill a more expansive role as the Eagles’ primary interior rusher behind Sanders? Maybe so, even if he failed to earn a single snap in his four years of action last fall, but do the Eagles really want to take that chance? I mean, we could be a play away from having to turn to the practice squad for mid-season elevatees like Josh Adams in 2018 or Scott in 2019. Surely that won’t work out well three years in a row, right?
In Williams, the Eagles could add the latest name to their longstanding search for a reliable long-term power rusher a la LeGarrette Blount, Jay Ajayi, and Jordan Howard. Like this trio, Williams can move the ball at ease between the tackles, burst through the line in either power or zone concepts, and even kick it outside if need be. While not the fastest rusher in the league (4.59 40), Williams is a solid pass blocker and can even contribute in the passing game much better than any of the Eagles’ former one-cut backs, a seriously useful skill that makes telegraphing what Doug Pederson is trying to do all the more challenging.
On a personal note, Williams also seems like a seriously cool dude. He’s aggressively optimistic, notably personable, and a massive fan of anime; with Naturo, One Piece, One Punch Man, and more littering his timelines. Willams has even declared that he believes himself to be the star of his own anime, a, shall we say, unique way of looking at things that I personally find very endearing.
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Sure, Williams is slated to hit the open market when the forthcoming season comes to an end, but if recent contracts shelled out to part-time power rushers are of any indication, the Eagles could surely find a way to squeak him in under their already massive cap holdings without much ease. Tevin Coleman started 11-14 games for the San Francisco 49ers last season and he was only signed to a two-year deal worth $8.5 million. Surely the Eagles could lock up Williams on a deal similar to Coleman’s ex-running mate Matt Breida at around $3.25 million a year.
Eventually, the Eagles are going to have to sign someone to play running back longterm as a foil to Sanders. Why not identify a 25-year-old who has been underutilized by his current team and put him in a position to succeed?
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Ultimately, it’s up to the Philadelphia Eagles to decide if JJ Arcega-Whiteside is in their long-term plans moving forward. If the team’s recent track record of holding onto high-round draft picks regardless of their on-field acumen is to be taken as law, JJAW may be an Eagle for the duration of his deal before signing a one-year contract with the Los Vegas Raiders when he hits free agency. But do recall that the Eagles moved on from Eric Rowe after one season because he was no longer a fit in the scheme the team wanted to run. If that too is the case with Jose Joaquin, then why not ship him out of town when his value is still high and bank on a legit rusher instead? Who knows, the Pack may even throw in a future draft pick to secure the former second-round pick’s services?