April 21, 2022
Kate Frese/for PhillyVoice
PHILADELPHIA - DECEMBER 26: J.J. Arcega-Whiteside #19 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks on during the game against the New York Giants at Lincoln Financial Field on December 26, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Philadelphia Eagles (former) wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside is moving to tight end, according to a report from Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Arcega-Whiteside is not the receiver the Eagles hoped he would be (or anything close, for that matter) when they selected him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Arcega-Whiteside had a good preseason in 2019 and a good training camp in 2020. But in real games, especially in his first two seasons in the NFL, he came up small. Arcega-Whiteside's rookie season was marred by mistakes, most notably a drop that cost the Eagles a game against the Detroit Lions. He finished with 10 catches for 169 yards and a TD. In 2020, he was more of an afterthought, as he made four catches for 85 yards and no TDs.
In 2021, a common thought among the Eagles' media and fan base was that the team should consider moving him to tight end, given his decent size (at least for a wide receiver) and willingness to block. He stayed at wide receiver, but his role really wasn't much different from that of a tight end, as he transformed himself into a blue collar, lunch pail kind of guy who deserved some positive recognition for working hard on special teams and doing some of the dirty work as a blocker on offense.
Arcega-Whiteside played 170 snaps in the regular offense in 2021, again, mostly as a blocker. Nick Sirianni went as far as to call him an "enforcer" in that role. But he only had five targets. In the Week 18 practice squad game against the Cowboys, he reminded us why:
😆 #FireHowie pic.twitter.com/RTk8XDeYO2
— Brian Bakker (@bakkerb1) January 9, 2022
Arcega-Whiteside is in the final year of his rookie contract. His move to tight end is another chance to show something in training camp and yet again make the 53-man roster. He'll compete for a roster spot with guys like Jack Stoll, Richard Rodgers, Noah Togiai, and if he's able to recover quickly from an ACL tear, Tyree Jackson. The Eagles could also select a tight end in the 2022 NFL Draft, though it is highly unlikely that they would do so before Round 3.
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