DeVonta Smith, the Eagles’ unquestioned top receiver, is focused on ‘going out there to do my job’
Teammate Jordan Mailata says that Smith, the Eagles' 2021 first-round pick, has "always been a No. 1 receiver."
With A.J. Brown shipping up to New England, DeVonta Smith is poised to become the top receiver in the revamped Eagles offense.
But “WR1” isn’t a totally new title for Smith, at least in the eyes of Jordan Mailata.
“He’s always been a No. 1 receiver,” the left tackle said Tuesday. “Nothing has changed for Smitty.”
Smith might not have been the No. 1 receiver for the last four years with Brown leading the group annually in receiving yards, but he has been a No. 1 receiver by Mailata’s definition since the Eagles drafted the Heisman Trophy winner in the first round of the 2021 draft.
» READ MORE: A.J. Brown’s former Eagles teammates react to the trade: ‘It’s a business.’
For Mailata, that title encompasses Smith’s impact with his performance and leadership. Smith has eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards in three of his last four seasons. He remains the all-time franchise leader in postseason receiving yards with 665.
While he may have taken a back seat in targets to Brown, his leadership wasn’t secondary to any of his teammates, according to Mailata.
“He always led from the front,” Mailata said. “And that’s why I’m calling it now, when he wears that captain’s patch this year, there’s no surprise. He’s always been a captain in my eyes, just from the way he’s led, the way he’s always gone about his business on and off the field.”
Still, Smith’s business on the field could look different in 2026. Sean Mannion, the Eagles’ fifth offensive coordinator under Nick Sirianni, is bringing a new scheme to Philadelphia rooted in his background in the Shanahan/McVay offense.
Over the last two weeks, organized team activities have offered a small glimpse at what that scheme might entail, from the utilization of pre-snap motion to quarterbacks lining up under center.
Changes to the passing game and the subtraction of a three-time Pro Bowl receiver will likely bring more opportunities for Smith. Nick Sirianni said at the combine in February that he expects to continue to see Smith “on the rise” in the new offense. Smith echoed his coach’s sentiments, stating that he expects more from himself every season.
“I think every year, you want to be better than you was the last one,” Smith said. “So it’s always going to be things you want to improve on.”
But Smith expressed that he isn’t fixated on the “WR1″ label as it relates to his role.
“I’m just going out there [to] do my job,” Smith said. “However you want to look at it, [receiver] one, two, three, four, whatever you want to look at it. At the end of the day, we all have jobs and we’ve got to go out there and do it.”
Right now, the job requires Smith to learn the new scheme. The 27-year-old receiver acknowledged that Mannion’s offense is “different” from what the Eagles have done in the past, although he did not go into specifics.
Smith is getting acclimated to the new terminology in Mannion’s offense. He said the offense will get into a flow with more repetitions over time.
“We’re all still trying to learn, we’re still installing,” Smith said. “But I think it’s going good. It’s only a matter of time before we really get a chance to go out there, and we have everything in [that] we’re doing, but right now, we’re just fine-tuning. Everybody’s trying to get a hold of everything.”
Amid the changes to the offense, Quinyon Mitchell said he still sees the same Smith he’s gone up against in practice for the last three seasons. Mitchell also expressed his confidence in Smith going forward as the team’s top receiver.
“He’s just so agile, versatile,” Mitchell said. “Gets in and out of his breaks good. He’s fast, he’s strong, he’s physical. So he’s a complete receiver.”
One facet of the offense that won’t change is the player throwing Smith the football. Both Smith and Jalen Hurts are going into their sixth seasons as starters. Over time, their relationship has grown stronger, Smith said.
He explained that their close working relationship is all the more important in the face of adversity, which the team is inevitably required to handle at some point every season.
“I’ve been knowing Jalen since high school, so it’s only getting better,” said Smith, who played with Hurts at Alabama in 2017 and ’18. “Two guys, think we both fairly know each other well, to know how to approach each other in certain things ... and to be able to just have that understanding that when things [are] not going right, we’re going to look at each other first.”
Smith has long been one of the longest-tenured Eagles wideouts, but now, he’s also one of the most experienced overall, second to Hollywood Brown. As a veteran, Smith said he tries to be a resource to his young teammates, including first-round pick Makai Lemon, who isn’t afraid to ask questions.
While the receiving corps may be young in age, Smith said he still views them as ripe with experience.
“A lot of guys that’s played a lot of football,” Smith said. “So I think at the end of the day, all of us can kind of help each other with our different experiences.”
That includes Dontayvion Wicks, who spent the first three years of his NFL career with the Green Bay Packers, overlapping with Mannion for two of them.
“Majority of the things in the receiving room that we may not know, we’re all asking him,” Smith said.
» READ MORE: The Eagles’ saga with A.J. Brown is finally over. His trade to the Patriots gives way to questions for both parties.
The offense is still a work in -progress with mandatory minicamp looming next week. As Smith nails down the scheme, he said he will have a better sense of what taking the next step in his game in Year 6 entails.
No matter what that growth ultimately looks like in a newfound role, Smith verbalized his objective for the season.
“I’m just going out here to do my job, whatever that may be for the week that we’re playing,” Smith said. “I’m just trying to go out there and do that.”
A.J. Brown is officially an Eagle no more! We knew the move was coming for weeks, if not months, but that doesn't make the departure of the Pro Bowl wide receiver and Super Bowl champion any less jarring. The Philadelphia Inquirer's Jeff McLane and David Murphy react to general manager Howie Roseman's trade with the New England Patriots. Listen here.
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