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The Philadelphia Eagles haven’t needed star wide receiver DeVonta Smith much the last 2 weeks — relatively easy wins over the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders that are part of the Eagles’ 6-game winning streak.
We might have an answer on Smith’s noticeable drop off in production in that stretch after the Eagles announced Smith won’t be available for a Week 12 road game against the Los Angeles Rams in front of a national television audience on Sunday Night Football.
“Smith did not participate in Wednesday and Thursday practice sessions due to the injury, and Eagles coach Nick Sirianni told reporters earlier Friday he was still waiting to see how Smith was feeling before determining the receiver’s status for the prime-time affair,” Around the NFL’s Nick Shook wrote. “Smith didn’t practice Friday, either, and was the only Eagles player ruled out for Sunday.”
The Eagles are 8-2 headed into Week 12 and in contention for the top seed in the NFC playoffs.
Smith’s Notable Drop in Production Last 2 Weeks
While Smith is second on the Eagles behind A.J. Brown with 41 receptions for 516 yards and 4 touchdowns, he’s had a noticeable dip in production the last 2 games with just 6 receptions for 43 yards and no touchdowns on 9 targets.
Smith is in his fourth season with the Eagles after they selected him No. 10 overall in the 2021 NFL draft. Smith left the University of Alabama as one of the greatest wide receivers in college football history, winning a pair of College Football Playoff national championships and becoming the first wide receiver to win the Heisman Trophy since Michigan’s Desmond Howard in 2021.
With the Eagles, Smith has been nothing short of dynamic, and is on pace for his third consecutive season with over 1,000 receiving yards in 2024. After putting up 81 receptions for 1,066 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2023, the Eagles rewarded Smith with a 3-year, $75 million contract extension in April 2024.
He’s also been incredibly durable despite his 6-foot, 170-pound frame, and Sunday’s game will be only the third he’s missed in 4 seasons.
Eagles Should Turn to Rookie WR to Step Up
The Eagles have been lacking a reliable third option at wide receiver all season, where they’ve tried to shoehorn former first round pick Jahan Dotson in alongside Brown and Smith after they traded a 2025 third round pick and two 2025 seventh round picks to the Washington Commanders in exchange for Dotson in August 2024.
Because Dotson only has 9 receptions for 106 yards and no touchdowns through 10 games — below even his middling pace for 2022 and 2023 — it might be a good idea for the Eagles to get some targets for 6-foot-7 rookie wide receiver Johnny Wilson.
The Eagles took Wilson in the sixth round (No. 185 overall) of the 2024 NFL draft after spent the first 2 seasons of his college career at Arizona State before transferring to Florida State, where he was a 2-time All-ACC pick in 2022 and 2023.
Wilson had 84 receptions for 1,514 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns in his final 2 collegiate seasons, and did so while missing 3 games due to injury in 2023.
In 10 games, Wilson only has 2 receptions for 14 yards and 1 touchdown on 7 targets.
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