When the top brass of the Philadelphia Eagles sat down prior to the 2008 NFL Draft to figure out their strategy, they may have noticed a couple of things about their team:
1. Brian Westbrook has been the main thrust of their offense since 2003 and, while he is a fantastic player, he is not capable of winning every game by himself (though it sometimes appears he can.)
2. The best season of Donovan McNabb's career came in 2004 when he threw for over 3,800 yards and 31 touchdowns. Coincidentally, for the first time ever, he also had a legitimate "Go To Guy" to throw to, a man who needs no introduction, but will find a way to provide you with one anyway (Terrell Owens.) While the experiment ultimately failed due to...um.. well, let's just call them "personality issues", one thing became clear: McNabb needed a true WR1 in order to have that level of success again.
Since they didn't have a first round pick in the draft after trading it away to Carolina, the Eagles had to wait until the second round to pick the receiver they hoped would add a game-changing element to their offense. Fortunately for them, the run on wide receivers didn't begin until then, so there was still a good chance they would land someone who could make a difference. With the 49th pick of the draft, they took DeSean Jackson, the lightning-quick wideout from University of California.
Jackson had the collegiate stats to go higher than he did. However, several teams were scared away by his lack of size. Though he was generously listed at 6'0 and 178 lbs., he was, in reality, a good deal smaller and the worries that his body could not hold up to the pounding in the pro game were justifiable.
Determined to silence the doubters, Jackson made an immediate impact in his first two games, recording over 100 receiving yards in each of them. The rest of the year was very "hit or miss" for him, though, as he definitely struggled against more physical cornerbacks. He still ended the season as Philadelphia's best receiver with 62 catches for 912 yards and two touchdowns.
Pretty good for a rookie....but are those the numbers of a guy you're going to spend a high draft pick on?
When you take a close look at all of his stats, you'll realize that Jackson averaged just under four catches and 57 yards per game. Then, there's the matter of only two touchdowns being scored. His 14.7 yards per catch average wasn't terribly indicative of his supposed game-breaking ability. In the end, no matter what format your league was using, it's doubtful that Jackson finished in top 20 rankings of WR's.
So, will he in 2009?
While he will have more experience and presumably become stronger after an off-season weight training program, Jackson will still face the same issues that he did this past year and he won't have the element of surprise on his side this time. Unless Philadelphia either drafts another playmaker or obtains one through free agency (there have been rumors that they are linked to Anquan Boldin), Jackson will continue to be the secondary focus of the defense behind only Westbrook and see more double teams. Also, there are questions regarding Donovan McNabb at quarterback, such as "Will he still be there at the start of the season?"
Of course, things could take a favorable turn for him if Westbrook suffers an injury that causes him to miss extensive time. The Eagles don't have a running back anywhere in the ballpark of Westy's talent level on the roster and therefore, would be forced to throw quite a bit in order to stay competitive.
Jackson should find the end zone more often this season. His offseason work will include plenty of film watching and the coaches will work with him on how to utilize his body better to make the tough grabs.
All in all, Jackson is not someone you're going to want to reach for at the draft. He will not put up WR1 numbers and should only be regarded as a low-end WR2 or a high WR3. Someone will take him in the second tier of wide receivers, but unless he falls to you past the sixth round, that guy shouldn't be you.
Like this article? View Future Forecast Archive