The Philadelphia Eagles have seen enough of the JJAW experiment at tight end.
The team has reportedly traded JJ Arcega-Whiteside to Seattle for defensive end Ugo Amadi.
Arcega-Whiteside was a second-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft selected ahead of current wide receivers DK Metcalf, Diontae Johnson and Terry McLaurin.
The Stanford product caught just 16 passes in three years for the Eagles for 290 yards and one touchdown catch. Arcega-Whiteside also recovered a fumble for a touchdown in the 2020 season.
Ruined by an inability to get open, Arcega-Whiteside was best known as a blocking wide receiver. After trying to make the 53-man roster at the tight end position, it seems the experiment wasn’t paying off enough for the Eagles.
However, the Eagles were able to find some trade value for the former second-round pick. Ugo Amadi was recently claimed off waivers for the Seahawks and joins a very crowded running back group.
The 2019 fourth-round pick recorded one interception and forced a fumble in seven starts last season for Seattle. Like Arcega-Whiteside, Amadi is in the final year of his rookie contract.
The Arcega-Whiteside trade closes the book on what was a very tumultuous few years for the Eagles’ scouting department, where certain traits were valued over other factors important to prospects.
While the Eagles have clearly moved on from a failed second-round pick, the residual effects of missing JJAW will be felt for years to come, as long as players like Terry McLaurin continue to make them pay in their own division.
Fortunately, the Eagles traded for WR AJ Brown, who was part of the same draft class, during the 2022 NFL Draft. While the Eagles blew JJAW, the Brown trade should make up for the lack of the pick .
AP Photo/Matt Rourke