Everyone this offseason has been zoned in on Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown because of the trade rumors, but over the last week, way more people have been talking about his partner at the receiver position, DeVonta Smith.
Since the NFL Combine, the noise has been that Smith could be a star in the making under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion and his Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan scheme. NBC Sports NFL fantasy expert Matthew Berry added that note to his list of things he heard at the combine.
"Regarding A.J. Brown, the Eagles are undecided on keeping him or not. They are definitely listening and are open to moving him as has been widely reported. But one thought around Brown possibly leaving that I hadn’t heard before was that the Eagles LOVE DeVonta Smith. They think, as good as he’s been in the NFL, he still hasn’t reached his full potential and has “another gear” he can get to. That, if Smith were given the same kind of target share as Jaxon Smith-Njigba, he could have that kind of year. They believe in his talent that much and that’s among the many reasons they would be okay moving Brown."
DeVonta Smith ready for a career season in Philly
Last season was one of the strongest years in Smith's career, as for the first time since Brown joined the team in 2022, Smith led the Eagles in receiving yards with 1,008 yards and added four touchdowns on 77 receptions.
That was the third time in Smith's five-year career that he posted over 1,000 yards in a season, with his 833 yards in 2024 being his lowest output. His four touchdowns last year were a career low for him.
The 2025 season was the first time for Eagles fans when it felt more like Smith was the number one receiver over Brown, as there were multiple stretches of games in which Smith outperformed Brown. Some of that could be blamed on play-calling by former offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, but the talent level is starting to level out between Smith and Brown.
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With Brown having a chance to be traded this offseason, it could be the first time since his rookie season in 2021 that Smith could be viewed as the number one receiver in the offseason. After all the talk from last week, Eagles fans are ready to see it in action.