DeVonta Smith, A.J. Brown making history together

Share

DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown are one of the most explosive and productive wide receiver tandems in the NFL.

And here’s the best part: Smith is 24 and the Eagles control his contract through 2025, and Brown is 25 and under contract through 2026.

They're not going anywhere.

Smith on Saturday in Dallas had another monster game – his second straight 100-yard game and third in the last four weeks – and surpassed 1,000 yards in his second season. He’s only the third wide receiver the Eagles have drafted in the last 30 years with a 1,000-yard receiving season, along with DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin.

Brown also recorded his second 100-yard game in a row and third in four weeks, increasing his season total to 1,304 yards, already fifth-most in Eagles history but only 28 yards behind second place. Brown, who will play at least one more game and perhaps two, needs 106 yards to break Mike Quick’s franchise record of 1,409 yards set in a 16-game season in 1983.

With 100-yard games against the Bears and Cowboys, Brown and Smith are the first Eagles tandem with 100-yard games in consecutive weeks since Pete Pihos and Bobby Walston in 1953.

With two games left, Brown and Smith are only the seventh teammates in NFL history – and only the sixth wide receivers - who both had 1,000 yards and seven TDs in a season before their 26th birthday:

John Jefferson, Kellen Winslow [Chargers], 1980
Mark Clayton, Mark Duper [Dolphins], 1984
Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald [Cards], 2005
Victor Cruz, Hakeem Nicks [Giants], 2011
Eric Decker, Demaryius Thomas [Broncos] 2012
Allen Hurns, Allen Robinson [Jaguars], 2015
A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith [Eagles], 2022

Two years ago, the Eagles’ receiving crew consisted of Travis Fulgham, Greg Ward, Jalen Reagor and a 34-year-old Jackson, as well as John Hightower, J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and Alshon Jeffery on the brink of retirement.

Howie Roseman learned his lesson and went to work.

Let’s face it, wide receiver has been a black hole on this team for most of the last 40 years.

Failed draft picks, underachieving free agents and fading veterans made up the WR crew far too many years. Fred Barnett had a couple 1,000-yard seasons but never really quite passed over the threshold to superstar. Irving Fryar had a couple huge years but was already in his mid-30s. T.O. was a beast but it was unsustainable. Jackson and Maclin had a nice run before Chip Kelly broke that up.

With two 1,000-yard WRs this year, the Eagles matched their total of the previous decade. 

What’s truly impressive about Smith and Brown is that they’re both high-volume receivers but also big-play specialists. That’s a rare combination.

Brown’s 80 catches are sixth-most by a wide receiver in Eagles history, and Smith’s 79 are seventh-most. And that’s with one or two games left.

And Brown ranks fourth in the NFL with 20 catches of at least 20 yards and Smith is right behind with 16, which is ninth-most. No other team has two receivers with 16 or more 20-yard catches this year. Which says as much about Jalen Hurts as Smith and Brown.

Best of these guys are clutch.

Brown is ninth in the league with 54 catches for first down and Smith is 14th with 49. Only Miami’s duo of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle also has 49 or more first downs each.

And both have been mighty down the stretch. Over the last six weeks, they rank second and third in the NFL in receiving yards, Brown with 579 and four TDs and Smith with 533 and four touchdowns. 

Justin Jefferson and Davante Adams are the only other wide receivers since Week 11 with 500 yards and four TDs.

If they’re not already the most dangerous 1-2 punch in Eagles history, they’re awfully close. They’re both young, they’re both under contract for a few more years, they both have tremendous relationships and chemistry with Jalen Hurts and they're both character guys in the locker room.

Howie Roseman finally got a first-round wide receiver right and followed that up with a blockbuster trade. 

And a franchise that’s tried to find answers over the last decade in everybody from Dorial Green-Beckham to Steve Smith to Mike Wallace to Marquis Goodwin to Paul Turner to Bryce Treggs to Golden Tate has finally found them in Smith and Brown, who both could be Eagles all-timers by the time all is said and done.

They're already well on their way.

Contact Us