When the Washington Redskins selected wide receiver Josh Doctson in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft, the idea was that he’d be able to slide in behind DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon and contribute immediately.
Doctson was coming off a senior season with TCU that saw him put up 78 receptions for 1,326 yards and 14 touchdowns. He had already shown a pro-ready set of hands and was prepared to make an impact.
That simply hasn’t happened.
The young receiver has played a total of two games this season and was placed on injured reserve back in October with the expectation that he might be able to return late in the season. Washington snuffed out that possibility on Thursday, announcing that it would shut Doctson down for the remainder of the year.
“It is disappointing for all of us,” Redskins head coach Jay Gruden said, via the team’s official website. “You know, we had high hopes for him coming out of TCU and the talent that he has and he’s disappointed but these things happen. There’s been a lot – if you look around the league, there’s a lot of first-rounders that didn’t get up and running this year for whatever reason and a lot of draft picks. So he’s just one of the guys that we have to take good care of.”
Doctson has been dealing with an Achilles’ injury since he was selected No. 22 overall during the spring. This decision is more about getting Doctson right and prepared for the 2017 season. With both Jackson and Garcon set to become free agents, the Redskins are going to need Doctson healthy to form a solid duo with fellow youngster Jamison Crowder.
Doctson finishes his rookie season having caught two passes for 66 yards in two games.