Skinny or Swole, Eagles' WRs Produce
PHILADELPHIA - Every once in a while Nick Sirianni gets passionate about something.
After Sunday's dominating 35-10 win over Tennessee, Devonta Smith hit the chord for the Eagles coach after a five-reception, 102-yard game, including a 34-yard touchdown reception from Jalen Hurts that opened the scoring.
"DeVonta has been going the whole year," said Sirianni. "I know there have been things that have been brought to my attention because of the questions you guys ask about, 'Well, does DeVonta need to get going?'
"He's been going. He's been a steady - besides the first game (against Detroit) where he got shut out. DeVonta has been going the whole year. ... He is just very steady.
"This guy is a phenomenal route runner."
Smith is hardly having a poor sophomore season and in fact, is on pace to do more than he did as a rookie, but the arrival of A.J. Brown has clearly knocked Smith down a peg from the obvious WR1 to the complementary piece.
Meanwhile, when star tight end Dallas Goedert is healthy, more often than not, the Eagles' passing game ran through Brown and Goedert before it got to Smith.
Smith, though, is still producing big numbers himself because the offense itself is more explosive.
The 2020 Heisman Trophy winner now has 61 receptions for 711 yards and four touchdowns this season through the team's 11-1 start. That pace would generate 86 catches for 1,007 yards over 17 games, far outdistancing the 64-916-5 he produced as a rookie.
"DeVonta's grown from everything. He's grown from stuff in college, from being a rookie last year, practice, all these things," QB Jalen Hurts said. "His game's been definitely taken to another level."
Smith was a big part of the Eagles' game plan early against the Titans with three receptions for 59 yards on the opening TD drive, including a 20-yard third-down conversion that erased two early false start penalties, and his TD.
It was the third-down play that Sirianni latched onto to exemplify what Smith brings to the Eagles' offense as Brown's co-star.
"That first third down, the thing he did on that route shows you just what - go back and look at that," said the coach. "I mean, someone will send me that this week zeroed in on that and someone writing an article about that because it was beautiful.
"He came across and came back out and it was just - he's clean out of the break. He is really - you saw the one where he - the yards after catch. He does everything well."
From there, Smith handed the baton back to Brown, who finished with eight receptions for 119 yards and two scores against his former team.
The two became the first Eagles duo to post 100-plus receiving yards each since Nelson Agholor (116 yards, 1 TD) and Zach Ertz (110 yards, 2 TDs) accomplished the feat on Dec. 23, 2018, against Houston.
“This game meant a lot to him. Big game for him," Smith said of his running mate. "He went out there and did what he’s supposed to do.”
Next week in North Jersey the leader of the pack against the New York Giants might be skinny, swole, or even speedy in the form of Quez Watkins.
"Anybody in the receiving room feels like he could be a number one receiver," said Smith. "Just go out there and do your job. When plays come to you, make the most of the opportunity.”
"Any time you get two guys that have 100 yards that's pretty sweet and makes you feel good as a coach," added Sirianni. "Makes them feel good as players that the whole room is contributing."
-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
