Can Eagles’ A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith Make Sweeter Music This Season? ‘It’s Going Good’
PHILADELPHIA – In their first year together, Philadelphia Eagles receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith made beautiful music together, playing to the tune of a combined 183 catches, 2,692 yards, and 18 touchdowns.
Maybe this year, that music becomes something even greater – a symphony, perhaps.
“Last year was kind of fast on us with A.J. just getting here,” Smith said. “You didn’t have that true full offseason to get to know each other, have dinner and things like that.
“I think now it’s way better. We have more time on our hands than going through the season, and kind of see how each other reacts. I feel like it’s going good.”
Smith put up his numbers – 95 catches, 1,196 yards, and seven touchdowns – despite not having a catch in the season-opener against the Detroit Lions, even after he was targeted four times.
Brown, meanwhile, was targeted 13 times and had 10 catches for 155 yards in that 38-35 win over the Lions last September.
It would have been easy for the relationship between him and Brown to become strained, with jealousy seeping in. It never happened.
The two have become even closer to the point where Brown said, “Me and DeVonta talk every day, either way, text or sending funny stuff on social media.”
“He’s going to continue to get better, he’s going to continue to strive," Brown said of Smith. "That guy is a great route runner. We were just watching highlights in there from the workout and he’s a really good route runner. The sky’s the limit and he's going to continue to get better.”
Both Brown and Smith were able to stay relatively healthy last year, and each played all 17 games. It was the first time Brown played every game in a season since his rookie year in 2019.
The question is, what would happen if one or both couldn’t play all 17 for whatever reason?
Behind them are Quez Watkins and Olamide Zaccheaus as well as a host of others that includes Britain Covey, the punt returner whose size likely limits him to the slot.
Smith was asked about Watkins and Zaccheaus on Wednesday.
On Watkins: “Quez has been working hard. He understands the standard we have in the room, not just with him, but with everybody.
"I have all the faith in Quez that he’s going to come in and do the things that he’s supposed to do, and he’s going to be a big part of this team.
On Zaccheaus: “Very explosive guy. You see it when he catches passes, how he catches it. He has the burst and things like that. We joked about it because every pass that he catches, he explodes out like he’s trying to get that YAC.
"So yeah, you can tell that with the ball in his hands, he’s going to be very special.”
Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.
Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter at @kracze.
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