Most Philadelphia Eagles fans are excited to see wide receiver DeVonta Smith play in his first season as the true number-one receiver.
Smith is taking over for A.J. Brown after the Eagles traded the disgruntled receiver to the New England Patriots, leaving quarterback Jalen Hurts' new top target as his former Alabama teammate. Last season, Smith led the Eagles in receiving yards with 1,008, marking the first time he had done that since Brown's arrival in Philly back in 2022.
With Smith's new role comes new pressure on the wide receiver to step up and have the same kind of production Brown had. While some in the media have their doubts, it might be the same thing for those around the NFL.
DeVonta Smith is not getting any kind of love in latest WR rankings
ESPN NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler shared new rankings of the top wide receivers based on a survey that includes league executives, coaches, and scouts' input. Smith did not make the top 10; in fact, he didn't even make the top 15, and depending on the voting, he might even be out of the top 20.
It's truly a slap to the face for a guy who has posted three 1,000-yard seasons in five years despite having Brown there as the number one guy. Smith has been able to make some incredible plays over the years, and he somehow still seems to get forgotten in the shuffle.
Pro Football Focus writers Dalton Wasserman and Max Chadwick also shared their wide receiver rankings entering the 2026 season. This one is a little bit better for Smith, but he is still ranked 14th on the list.
"Smith led the Eagles in receiving yards in 2025 for the first time since his rookie season in 2021. That was largely because A.J. Brown had been Philadelphia's No. 1 receiver since arriving in a 2022 trade. With Brown now in New England, Smith is clearly Jalen Hurts‘ top target. He should be more than up to the challenge. Smith's 4,103 receiving yards over the past four seasons rank 11th in the NFL, as do his 26 receiving touchdowns during that span."
Smith is literally putting up numbers that would put him in the conversation for the top 10, but no one wants to put him there. It's insane that the stats are holding him back from moving up when the eye test shows how great he is.
This offseason, Smith has been putting in the work to be ready to be the Eagles' number-one receiver in 2026 and beyond. While the physical skill sets are there, it's more about mentally preparing for the moment, which he has been doing since Philly drafted him in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
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Give Smith 17 games in 2026 to prove his worth as a number-one receiver, and there is a strong chance that when these rankings come out next year, they will be eating their words and putting him in the top-10 with no question asked.
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