HEADLINES

Olamide Zaccheaus

Commanders To Sign WR Olamide Zaccheaus

March 28th, 2024 at 5:45pm CST by Ben Levine

Following a one-year stop in Philadelphia, Olamide Zaccheaus will be sticking in the NFC East. The veteran wide receiver has agreed to a contract with the Commanders, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.

The former undrafted free agent made a name for himself in Atlanta, where he spent the first four seasons of his career. Zaccheaus earned a larger role each season during his time with the Falcons, culminating in a 2022 campaign where he hauled in 40 receptions for 533 yards and three touchdowns. The wideout spent two of his four seasons with the Falcons playing under current Commanders head coach Dan Quinn.

He caught on with the Eagles last offseason and proceeded to get into every game for his new squad. Zaccheaus mostly served as the third receiver behind A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, but that still only resulted in 10 catches.

In Washington, Zaccheaus could settle into that familiar WR3 role behind Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson. Swiff Army Knife weapon Curtis Samuel won’t be part of Kliff Kingsbury‘s first offense in Washington, so there are some WR snaps to go around. The team gave Dyami Brown a look last year, and the 2021 third-round pick should compete for reps behind the top-two wideouts. The team also re-signed veteran Jamison Crowder, so there’s a bit of competition for Zaccheaus to overcome.

Olamide Zaccheaus To Vie For Eagles’ Slot WR Role

July 7th, 2023 at 9:49pm CST by Ely Allen

Aside from running back Miles Sanders, who departed for Carolina in free agency, the Eagles return every starting skill player on offense. For an offense that finished last year second in the league in scoring and total yardage, that doesn’t leave a lot of room for improvement. Still the defending NFC Champions may have found a spot at which to improve, according to Geoff Mosher and Andrew DiCecco of Inside the Birds.

The 2022 Eagles saw quarterback Jalen Hurts spoiled with three star pass catchers in A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and tight end Dallas Goedert. Quez Watkins contributed out of the slot with 33 catches for 354 yards, but that was a big step back from a sophomore campaign that saw him catch 43 balls for 647 yards.

That makes the offseason free agent addition of former Falcons wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus fairly noteworthy. While Watkins took a step back in 2022, Zaccheaus has done nothing but improve year after year. In a year that saw Atlanta struggle behind the arms of Marcus Mariota and rookie Desmond Ridder, Zaccheaus delivered his best statistical season alongside a star-starved cast of rookie Drake London, Damiere Byrd, and KhaDarel Hodge.

With a 2022 line of 40 receptions for 533 yards and three touchdowns and the ability to progress each season, Zaccheaus provides an exciting potential upgrade for Philadelphia on offense. Watkins struggled at times last year, arguably playing a role in some of the team’s few losses. Zaccheaus provides more dependable hands, as well as a size and skill-set not possessed by the team’s top two wideouts.

The team’s fourth receiver last year, Zach Pascal, performed more as a blocker than a receiver, and he can continue in that role in 2023. If unseated by Zaccheaus, Watkins can rotate with Pascal as the fourth receiver, depending on the situation, or fill in for Brown or Smith if either need a breather or get injured.

So Hurts’s targets could look slightly different next year. Aside from new running backs D’Andre Swift and Rashaad Penny leading that room now, Hurts could be throwing to wide receivers Brown, Smith, and Zaccheaus and the tight end, Goedert, with Watkins and Pascal coming off the bench.

Eagles To Add WR Olamide Zaccheaus

April 19th, 2023 at 3:36pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Eagles lost one of their auxiliary wideouts in free agency, seeing Zach Pascal join the Cardinals. They will pick up another. Former Falcon Olamide Zaccheaus agreed to terms with the Eagles on Wednesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.

Zaccheaus, 25, spent the past four seasons in Atlanta, playing a regular receiving role despite joining the team as a UDFA. The fifth-year wideout is coming off a season in which he established career-high numbers in both receptions (40) and yards (533). This also represents a homecoming for Zaccheaus, who attended high school in Philadelphia.

As the Falcons changed regimes, they gutted their receiving corps. In 2020, Zaccheaus resided behind Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage. By 2022, all three were out of the picture. Zaccheaus worked as Drake London‘s top complementary receiver last season, finishing as Atlanta’s second-leading pass catcher. The Virginia alum also topped 400 receiving yards in 2021, stepping up in responsibility after Ridley’s midseason departure.

Barring multiple injuries, no such role will be in the cards for Zaccheaus in Philly. The Eagles return their A.J. Brown–DeVonta Smith–Dallas Goedert trio, and Quez Watkins is going into a contract year. Zaccheaus marks an interesting addition due to limited special teams experience. He has five career returns and has not cleared a 30% special teams usage rate since his rookie season. Of course, Zaccheaus goes 5-foot-8, 193 pounds.

This should establish a fairly clear divide between the Eagles’ top four at receiver and the other players rostered. The team still employs Greg Ward, but he did not play in 2022. Returner Britain Covey and ex-Bronco Tyrie Cleveland are also under contract. The team retained Olympian hurdler Devon Allen via a reserve/futures deal, though it remains to be seen if the former Oregon slot receiver will make a serious push at a roster spot after spending 2022 on Philly’s practice squad.

RFA/ERFA Tender Signings: 4/19/22

April 19th, 2022 at 8:08pm CST by Ben Levine

Here’s a look at the latest tender signings from around the NFL:

RFAs

Signed:

ERFAs

Signed:

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/15/22

March 15th, 2022 at 6:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s a look at the latest tender decisions from around the NFL:

RFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Falcons Sign Laquon Treadwell To 53

December 1st, 2020 at 2:54pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

A former first-rounder is back on an active roster. Receiver Laquon Treadwell has been activated off the practice squad COVID list and signed to the Falcons’ 53-man roster, the team announced Tuesday.

Fellow receiver Olamide Zaccheaus was placed on injured reserve with a toe injury in a corresponding roster move. The Vikings drafted Treadwell 23rd overall in 2016, but obviously that pick never panned out. He caught only one pass as a rookie, and never topped 302 yards during his four years in Minnesota. After his rookie deal expired (with his fifth-year option not being picked up), he signed with Atlanta back in March.

He was waived at final cuts, but quickly added back to the practice squad. Now with Zaccheaus headed to IR and Julio Jones nursing a hamstring injury that kept him on the sidelines in Week 12, Treadwell could manage to get some playing time. Still only 25, it’s nice to see the Ole Miss product get another opportunity.

Zaccheaus is a 2019 UDFA from Virginia. He made the 53-man roster as a rookie but played mostly on special teams, catching three passes for 115 yards. This time around he’d been playing a bigger role, and had a couple of huge games in Weeks 4 and 9 when he went off for 86 and 103 yards respectively. The unheralded wideout will be eligible to return in Week 16. If he doesn’t make it back, he’ll finish his sophomore campaign with 20 catches for 274 yards and a touchdown while making two starts.

Falcons Sign 16 Undrafted Free Agents

April 29th, 2019 at 2:18pm CST by Zachary Links

The Falcons agreed to sign with 16 undrafted college free agents on Monday. Here’s the full breakdown of Atlanta’s eight new offensive players, seven new defenders, and one long snapper:

Stanley, a wide receiver at Georgia, will aim to show his stuff as a cornerback for the Falcons. The 6’2″, 207-pounder didn’t see a ton of playing time with the Bulldogs, but the Falcons are curious to find out whether his athletic skills can translate to success on the other side of the ball.