Eagles WR Depth Will Be Hot-Button Issue By July (And Why This Impacts Offense)

The Eagles moved on from A.J. Brown, but their depth isn't perfect

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Moving on from A.J. Brown wasn't what the Philadelphia Eagles wanted to do. The Eagles would have preferred to keep Brown, but the star wide receiver wanted out of Philadelphia.

The Eagles prepared for life without Brown this offseason, acquiring Dontayvion Wicks and drafting Makai Lemon in the first round. They also signed Hollywood Brown and Elijah Moore, completely revamping the wide receiver position.

Also helps the Eagles had a WR1 in the fold in DeVonta Smith.

The Eagles are deeper at wide receiver. There's no question about that, but are they better?

Life without A.J. Brown is going to be difficult, and the Eagles aren't going to be better catching the football or having players get open because Brown isn't around. This is where Sean Mannion's offense could help, yet buyer beware.

The wide receiver depth may be a big problem in training camp if things don't go according to plan.

Makai Lemon's health

A hamstring injury that kept Lemon out of minicamp doesn't raise a red flag -- it's only June after all. Lemon is behind in his development as a result, and will need to catch up to speed in training camp.

The Eagles are counting on Lemon to play a big one in their offense this year, whether that's strictly in the slot or moving him around. Lemon is a good route runner and appears set to contribute immediately, but it's uncertaain how quickly he'll adjust to the NFL.

Lemon may need some time to adapt, and the hamstring injury needs to be 100% for his training camp to go smoothly. A setback could really put the Eagles in a hole at wide receiver.

Is Dontayvion Wicks good?

There's a lot of pressure for Wicks to seize the WR2 job and be the compliment to DeVonta Smith. Wicks will battle with Lemon for the job, but the Eagles gave Wicks enough faith in his talent to add a one-year extension after acquiring him.

This is a two-year experiement with Wicks, but the Eagles believe he's a better player than what he had shown in Green Bay. Also helped he knows Mannion's offense.

The Eagles need Wicks to be better than he was with the Packers, as he was a No. 3 option (at best) before Green bay moved on. If Wicks isn't consistent in the WR2 or WR3 role, life is going to be very tough for Jalen Hurts.

Hard to replace A.J. Brown

Tbrown may not have been the best wide reciever in Eagles history, but he was very good in his four years in Philadelphia. He is the only receiver to have four 1,000-yard seasons for the franchise and the only player to have 5,000 receiving yards in a four-year stretch.

For all the controversy Brown caused, he was excellent on the football field. He was a top-5 reciever in the game.

Brown and Smith were a dangerous 1-2 punch at wide receiver, perhaps the best duo in the league. Smith is going to replace Brown, but who is going to replace Smith at WR2? Will it be Lemon or Wicks?

The Eagles will either be asking a rookie wideout to replace Smith immediately, or someone the Packers decided to move on from that fell down the depth chart in Green Bay. Neither of those two will replace with Smith did as a WR2, which is where not having brown on the roster affects this team.

Philadelphia is deeper from WR2 to WR4 with Wicks, Lemon, and Hollywood Brown -- but isn't as top-heavy with Brown and Smith not together anymore. This will affect the passing game, and the receivers' ability to get open.

If Lemon or Wicks don't live up to the hype, the wide receiver depth will play a major role in how this offense performs. The Eagles will feel some affects of A.J. brown not playing in Philadelphia.