Eagles’ Dontayvion Wicks looked like a true WR2 in win over Commanders
Wicks added value in his formal debut with the Eagles, ending Week 1 as the Birds' most productive wide receiver.
The Eagles offense was looking for a spark.
After logging just two total yards in the first two series of the Sean Mannion era, they needed someone — anyone — to step up in a crucial Week 1 divisional game vs. the Commanders.
Thankfully for them, their most underrated offseason acquisition answered the call. Twice.
With 1 minute, 57 seconds to go in the first quarter, wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks hauled in a 64-yard pass from Jalen Hurts in what would become the Eagles’ first touchdown drive of the season (Wicks was tackled at the 6-yard line, but tight end Dallas Goedert scored three plays later). Wicks came down with the ball — which traveled 40-plus yards through the air — after he darted past Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil in coverage. It was the longest catch of his career.
One quarter later, Wicks worked his magic again.
Again with Sainristil in coverage, Wicks motioned left before shimmying past the Commanders cornerback to break free and secure a 9-yard touchdown that put the Birds up 14-3. His final stat line in the 24-22 victory? Two catches on four targets for 73 yards and one touchdown. He only eclipsed 70 yards one time last season with the Packers.
The new Eagles weapon was all smiles in the locker room afterward.
“Man, just going out there and doing my role, I know it’ll help us win … the coaches trust me, letting me go on out and do that and make plays. That’s what I did.”
» READ MORE: The Eagles considered pushing Dallas Goedert out the door. He keeps showing why they didn’t.
Wicks, 25, was the clear WR2 in the game. He finished with 50 snaps according to Pro Football Focus, trailing only DeVonta Smith (52). This is a welcome change for a player that was buried deep in the Packers’ receiver room last season (he never played more than 54% of the offensive snaps in a single season).
Could that change in Philadelphia? If he continues playing like this, he’ll earn it.
“In Green Bay, we had so many guys. Over here, I’m able to get those looks,” Wicks said. “Over there, I ain’t really had [opportunities].”
The Eagles traded for Wicks this offseason after he spent three seasons with the Packers, the team that drafted him in the fifth round in 2023 out of Virginia. The Eagles signed him to a one-year, $10.5 million extension, keeping him under contract through 2027.
They brought him in large part due to his connection with Mannion, with whom he overlapped for two seasons in Green Bay when Mannion served as a Packers offensive assistant in 2024 and the quarterbacks coach in 2025.
How does Wicks feel about the offense, which generated 318 total yards on 12 drives?
“I think [the presnap motion] messed the defense up,” Wicks said. “I think it does a lot with showing us what the defense is going to be in. … So once I motion over and see a DB is chatting and locking, it’s man. …. So, you do motions, they help with tells.”
» READ MORE: Eagles grades vs. Commanders: Jalen Hurts delivers when needed; Zack Baun stars on defense in the win
Hurts, who compiled 203 yards and three touchdowns, praised his new weapon after the game.
“I think there’s an opportunity to grow and be able to maintain that level of attack, but I can’t say enough on how he showed up, played, and executed,” said Hurts.
“I think there’s going to be a natural maturation within this system, and particularly maturation within the end-game chemistry that we build, because that’s something that is very important.”
