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Quarterbacks have DeVonta Smith to thank for forcing one of the greatest cornerbacks to ever do it to walk away. Five-time Pro Bowler Richard Sherman cited a 2021 game, specifically his 1-on-1 matchup against Smith, for setting the wheels in motion for his retirement.
Sherman, a one-time Super Bowl champion, should get fitted for a Gold Jacket one day. He racked up 37 interceptions and 116 pass breakups during 11 dominant seasons. But, the realization that it was time to hang up his cleats came on October 14, 2021 at Lincoln Financial Field when the Philadelphia Eagles were hosting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Sherman — 33 years old at the time — couldn’t keep up with Smith and nearly snapped his groin trying to chase him around the field. That was it.
“He must’ve stopped and I tried to stop and my whole groin said snap, snap, snap, snap and I said whoa, whoa,” Sherman told Lane Johnson on his podcast. “Then you’re trying to guard and chasing him around and you’re like please don’t throw him the ball, please. At that moment I was like yeah, this is probably my last year. I don’t got it for these young dudes right here.”
Smith is arguably the best route runner in football right now. The way he gets in and out of breaks is poetry in motion, and that skill marries well with his insane “toe drag swag.” The third-year receiver is sneaky fast, too, which his Olympic hurdler teammate Devon Allen pointed out.
“DeVonta Smith would be a great sprinter. I think his event would be the 400,” Allen said. “He just has that mindset of hard work and training, and the 400-meter dash is the hardest event, so I know Smitty could definitely lock in and kind of grind to run a fast time.”
DeVonta Smith ‘Humbly’ a Top-10 Receiver
DeVonta Smith made headlines back in May when he “humbly” put himself into the conversation as a top-10 receiver in the NFL. Fresh off his first 1,000-yard season — 95 catches for 1,196 yards in 2022 — the Heisman Trophy winner has burst on the scene.
When asked if he was a top-10 receiver, Smith said: “That’s just me being confident in my abilities. I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t have many guys that come up here and say they don’t think they’re not [in the top 10]. But just being confident in my abilities and just raising my play.”
If the Eagles hadn’t traded for A.J. Brown, then Smith would be the go-to guy in Philly. Even so, what he’s done over his first two NFL seasons has been remarkable. He’s well on his way to creeping up the national radar.
“I kind of always felt like that to myself, humbly,” Smith said.
No Lingering Effects From Toe Injury
Smith was dealing with a nagging toe injury during the 2022 campaign and limped off the Super Bowl field at one point after aggravating it. The 24-year-old rising star rehabbed throughout the offseason, mainly by icing his toe and getting frequent massages. He’s 100 percent healthy heading into training camp as he works on the mental part of his game.
“I’m good now,” Smith told reporters on May 24. “The mental side of the game, continue to get mentally sharp in my preparation and going out there to play where I can see things faster. Recognition of the defenses, you know teams change every year, a lot of coordinators change and things like that so teams that you may have played in the past may not be running the same scheme and things like that.”
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