BIOGRAPHY
Jahan Dotson was born March 22, 2000, in Newark, New Jersey. He is a wide receiver in the NFL.
As a true freshman at Penn State in 2018, Dotson appeared in eight games and made four starts, recording 13 receptions for 203 yards. As a sophomore in 2019, he started all 13 games and had 27 receptions for 488 yards and five touchdowns. Dotson became Penn State's number one receiver his junior year in 2020. On October 31, he had a breakout game in Penn State's primetime loss to Ohio State. Dotson went for 8 catches, 144 yards, and 3 touchdowns against All-American cornerback Shaun Wade, including a one-handed catch over Wade. On December 12, Dotson became the third Big Ten player since 2000 to have a punt return touchdown and 100 receiving yards in the same game. The next week, he had touchdowns of 75 yards, 70 yards, and a punt return of 50 yards in Penn State's win over Illinois. Dotson was named third-team All-Big Ten Offense in 2020, totaling 884 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. On January 7, 2021, Dotson announced he would return to Penn State for the 2021 season. Between the last two games of the 2020 season and the first four games of the 2020 season, Dotson recorded touchdown receptions in six consecutive games, a Penn State record. In Penn State’s November 6th win over Maryland, Dotson recorded 11 receptions for 242 yards and 3 touchdowns. His performance broke Deon Butler’s record for receiving yards in a game, beating Butler’s mark of 216. On December 27, 2021, Dotson announced he would sit out Penn State's appearance in the Outback Bowl, simultaneously declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft and bringing an end to his collegiate career. He finished his Penn State career second in school history in both career (183) and single-season (91 in 2021) receptions; fourth in career receiving yards (2,757); second in single-season receiving yards (1,182 in 2021); and second in both career (25) and single-season (12 in 2021) touchdowns.
In the 2022 NFL Draft, Jahan Dotson was selected #16 overall by the Washington Commanders.
Dotson signed his four-year rookie contract worth $15 million on May 18, 2022. He was named the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week in his debut with the Commanders after catching three passes for 40 yards and two touchdowns in a Week 1 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. In Week 4, Dotson suffered a hamstring injury in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The injury sidelined him for five games, and he made his return in Week 10 against the Philadelphia Eagles. He won the award a second time in Week 13 after catching four passes for 105 yards and a touchdown against the New York Giants. Dotson finished the season with 31 receptions for 523 yards and seven touchdowns.
