DeVonta Smith (hamstring) sidelined on Monday

Smith continues to miss practice with a hamstring injury. While the injury isn’t considered to be serious, the Eagles still aren’t going to push Smith in practice just yet. He figures to be the top target in the Eagles new offense under new OC Sean Mannion in the wake of the Eagles trading A.J. Brown this offseason.

It’s a blow to the Eagles as first-year offensive coordinator Sean Mannion uses training camp to install his system and ensure the team’s key players — including Lemon and Smith — are acclimated to the offense before the regular season. Hopefully the Eagles’ top two wideouts don’t miss much time with the soft tissue injuries. We can expect Eagles coaches to be cautious with Smith, the team’s new No. 1 receiver, and Lemon, who will likely play primarily from the slot in 2026. The Athletic’s Zach Berman said this week that the team “seems committed to finding ways to get [Lemon] the ball.”

It’s no surprise that Smith is expected to see more work in 2026. The team traded A.J. Brown to New England in the offseason and Makai Lemon won’t replace all of his vacated production as a rookie. All reports from the offseason have suggested that the Eagles believe Smith is ready to be a true No. 1 receiver, including these quotes from Sirianni. He noted that every time Smith has seen an uptick in opportunities, he’s taken advantage of them. As the top target-earner on an offense that should rebound this year, Smith has a chance at WR1 numbers if things break his way in 2026.

Under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, who will reportedly have “total authority” over the team’s offense, Jalen Hurts and the Eagles will have to learn an entirely new playbook predicated on the concepts that have made Kyle Shanahan’s 49ers and Sean McVay’s Rams two of the league’s most efficient offenses. This is very much in line with Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie pledging in April that the team would implement “significant offensive changes” after a 2025 campaign in which they ranked 17th in EPA per play, in line with the Texans and Falcons. Depending on which version of the Shanny/McVay offense Mannion installs, Saquon Barkley could see more pass-game involvement while short-area pass catchers like Dallas Goedert and rookie Makai Lemon see plenty of looks from Hurts, who last year ranked 14th out of 45 qualifying quarterbacks in accuracy on short throws. In 2024, Hurts led all QBs in accuracy on attempts between 1-10 yards.

Smith’s backers “believe that if Brown were no longer with the team that Smith can have a similar jump in production that Jaxon Smith-Njigba had in Seattle once DK Metcalf was out of the way.” Smith NJigba, following an ordainry 2024 rookie campaign, blew up in 2025 to the tune of 1,992 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2025, with an elite 3.42 yards per route run, trailing only Puka Nacua. Brown is almost certain to exit Philadelphia in the coming weeks after a tumultuous 2025 season. That would open up targets for Smith, though the low-volume nature of the Eagles passing offense could be something of a damper on Smith’s statistical upside. Brown in 2025 was targeted on 28 percent of his routes while Smith saw a target on 23 percent of his routes, in line with Deebo Samuel and Troy Franklin.

Under head coach Nick Sirianni and new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, a former NFL quarterback, Lurie said the Eagles would make the tweaks necessary to bounce back after a down 2025 campaign. “This year, it was really apparent to everybody, but especially I would say to our head coach that we were able and going to make some significant offensive changes that would get us back to being a championship-level offense,” Lurie said. “We have our own proprietary metrics and ways of measuring offensive and defensive performance, and our offense was not what we were either accustomed to or expected of.” The usually-efficient Philadelphia offense last season ranked 17th in EPA per play, behind teams like the Commanders and Giants. Jalen Hurts’ passing efficiency fell off big time, as the Eagles were 15th in adjusted yards per pass attempt, in line with the Falcons and Texans.

Smith is coming off a 113-target season, which marks the second-most targets for him in a season. Berman writes that the Eagles believe they “can create an environment” for Smith to hit another level, with head coach Nick Sirianni saying getting Smith targets “is always going to be important.” The easiest path to Smith seeing more targets would be through an A.J. Brown trade, which may or may not happen. Regardless, any efforts to get Smith more involved could bode well for an offense that’s likely to take more shots through the air after ranking 24th in pass attempts last season.

After firing offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo following a mostly disastrous 2025 season, the Eagles should seek “a fresh set of eyes” to reevaluate the Philly offense and how it utilizes its skill position players, Murphy said. McDaniel, who designed and called plays for a Miami offense that ranked among the NFL’s most efficient from 2022 to 2024 — before the team’s 2025 collapse. Eagles players, including DeVonta Smith, said after the team’s Wild Card loss to the 49ers that the offensive scheme had not changed at all in recent years despite the Eagles shuffling through offensive coordinators. That suggests the problem lies with head coach Nick Sirianni. “Howie Roseman and Jeffrey Lurie pride themselves on being ahead of the curve. They’d rather be a year early than a year late,” Murphy said. “Right now, it is getting late early. McDaniel or not, they need a new voice, an inventive mind, and a fresh set of eyes. Anybody else will end up right where Patullo is. And that’s not fair to anybody.”

Smith led the Eagles in catches and yards in what ended up another dysfunctional day for the passing attack, this one in a season-ending loss. That included more A.J. Brown drama, with the supposed No. 1 wideout dropping a critical late target and arguing earlier in the contest with coach Nick Sirianni. Brown then left the stadium without talking to the media. It certainly seems like Brown wants his time with the Eagles to be through, which would finally give 27-year-old Smith his first shot as a legitimate No. 1 wideout in 2026. Despite this passing attack’s issues, Brown’s departure would make Smith a high-end WR2, at worst. He could easily provide WR1 returns. There’s still a lot that needs to happen between now and then, but early drafters can treat Smith as if Brown will be gone.

Smith is one of the few Eagles starters that played in this game, entering Week 18 looking to gain 44 yards to get to 1,000 yards receiving on the season. He got there in the first quarter, catching three passes for 52 yards to join A.J. Brown as 1,000-yard receivers for the Eagles. The shifty veteran has speed downfield and operates efficiently on the outside. He will be the team’s WR2 heading into the playoffs, a role that may not get him many touchdowns but will give Smith the occasional splash play.