How the Eagles’ A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith forged a complementary relationship on and off the field

A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith huddled together in the Eagles’ locker room, listing the best players in the NFL and then jotting them down in a much-considered order.

Of the Eagles who bothered filling out the NFL’s Top 100 list passed out each December, few spent more time chewing on their selections than their top two receivers.

They went back and forth, Sharpies in hand, holding court on each player named.

Jalen Hurts. Patrick Mahomes. Justin Jefferson. Tyreek Hill. Nick Bosa. A.J. Brown. ...

DeVonta Smith?

Smith, a few weeks away from completing a 95-catch season and setting a franchise record for receivers, shakes his head. The NFL only asks players for 20 names each, and he isn’t ready to put himself in that rarified air.

“Nah, not yet.”

Modesty aside, he’s on his running mate’s ballot.

“Don’t sell yourself short,” Brown contended.

The conversation is illustrative of the dynamic between the two receivers; both complimentary and complementary. Brown is the exuberant figure, quick to crack a big smile or burst into laughter during a conversation. Smith can be more reserved, although he’s still characterized as a jokester by his teammates.

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The common thread lies in their confidence and the seriousness that washes over them when it comes to their craft. They know how to gain separation from a defensive back, they know how to attack the football, and they know what to do once they have it. And they both want to win. It’s the reason they’ve quickly become one of the best receiving duos in Eagles history and the reason they’ll be a pivotal part of the team’s postseason fortunes beginning Saturday night against the visiting New York Giants in the NFC divisional round.

“I feel like we’re still just getting started,” Brown said. “We’ve got a long way to go. We’re going to be here together for a while.”

When Brown first arrived at the NovaCare Complex, he bided his time.

The Eagles traded a first- and a third-round pick to the Tennessee Titans and subsequently signed him to a four-year, $100 million contract extension in the offseason, and Brown knew there would be a feeling-out process in his new situation.

He was entering a wide receivers room with Smith as the budding star and young leader of a group that experienced multiple upheavals in recent years. Brown’s arrival shifted the Eagles from a team in need of another viable receiving option to one with the “good problem” of having a handful of high-volume targets in the passing game. And his close friendship with Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts dating back to a recruiting visit was well-documented.

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The potential for unease was there, so Brown made a point of showing deference to Smith as the leader of the group.

“I had to earn guys’ trust,” Brown said. “I had to earn his trust. I think I was trying to figure it out, find a way, you know? I’m the new guy in the room, I’m pretty sure they were worried about a lot of things, where would they fit in and how would I fit in. It took some time just to build that trust with the guys and him, for sure, because he was the leader in the room.”

Most of his teammates noticed Brown was treading lightly. It eventually gave way, but his approach had the intended effect.

“When he came in, he did a good job of seeing whose team this was without stepping in too much,” return specialist and slot receiver Britain Covey said. “There’s just a level of earning everybody’s respect. I think he did a great job of knowing when to step in and when to be a vocal leader and when to be a leader just by example.”

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By August, the group cleared its first hurdle, forging a bond over consecutive road trips for joint practices and preseason games. During the first leg of the trip in Cleveland, Brown’s “goofy” side came out.

The wideouts would get together for meals, hang out in each other’s hotel rooms, and realize the potential for comedy among them.

“That’s when we [jelled],” third-year receiver Quez Watkins said. “We were on the field, just dying laughing. We’re just a big group of goofballs.”

That potential has since transferred over to the wide receivers’ group chat. Topics vary and can often shift quickly in the text thread, just as they can during position meetings.

They share TikTok videos, especially ones where people satirically break down film, and discuss “current events.”

“It’s not just football,” Smith said. “We talk about football, but honestly, we try not to talk about football as much just because you’re around it so much, it’s like you don’t want to just talk about it all day. We have conversations about other things, laugh and joke about a lot of things.”

The group spent part of their first-round bye week going to a local bowling alley as well. Covey, who characterizes himself as “the little brother” of the wideouts, posted a video of Brown rolling a strike with his game check on the line.

“Smitty brought his own ball,” Covey added. “We told him that was cheating.”

Even as Brown assimilated into the group dynamic off the field, they still had to work through the kinks of playing together.

Brown’s Eagles debut against the Detroit Lions featured 10 catches for 155 yards on 13 targets. Smith, by comparison, had no catches on four targets. Watkins had zero targets.

After the game, Brown made a point to say the target share would even out over time.

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Smith’s day came two weeks later against the Washington Commanders. Watkins had to wait a while longer, which he conceded led to some frustration early in the year. His dad said he “got in his head” about the diminished role following Brown’s arrival, but Watkins eventually found steady ground in the Eagles’ offense partly thanks to tight end Dallas Goedert missing five games with a shoulder injury.

Even when Brown or Smith dominated the target share, each had experience in staying level-headed. At Ole Miss, Brown shared the field with DK Metcalf, Elijah Moore, and tight end Dawson Knox, each of whom were also Day 2 draft picks in their respective years.

Smith is one of the few players whose collegiate supporting cast outshines Brown’s. The 2020 Heisman Trophy winner played at Alabama with eventual first-round receivers Jerry Jeudy, Jaylen Waddle, Calvin Ridley, and Henry Ruggs in college. Smith even shared the field in high school with Devonta Lee, a four-star receiver who committed to LSU.

“It helped a lot,” Smith said. “You never know when it’s going to be your game, you have to just be ready for it. It can be anybody’s game, so playing with [Brown] a lot, it was kind of easy because I had already been through it.”

After a sporadic start to the season, Smith’s 95 catches, 1,196 yards, and seven touchdown receptions surpassed each of the goals he set for himself.

Smith heads into the divisional round of the playoffs on a hot streak. The 24-year-old has 24 catches for 295 yards and two touchdowns in the last three games, and Brown has taken notice.

“Early on, he was trying to find his way, trying to get going,” Brown said. “The last couple weeks I feel like he’s just been locked in on another level. I think it’s just the mental part of it. He’s been doing what he’s been doing, but you really can do whatever you want to do if you just visualize it and go to work. I think he’s just realizing that and believing that. I think the sky’s the limit for him, man.”

When the rest of the defense rests on the sideline or goes over adjustments between possessions, Mario Goodrich sometimes sneaks off.

The Eagles practice-squad cornerback is typically in street clothes on game days unless he’s called up. Whenever he can, he likes to steal a moment to watch the two guys he spends so much time trying to stay in front of throughout the week.

The existence of a scout-team cornerback trying to give competitive looks to Brown and Smith can sometimes be a grueling one. There’s plenty to learn for a young player such as Goodrich, but there’s also plenty of validation that comes from watching the pair of wideouts give hell to someone else on Sundays.

“[Shoot], I be hype,” Goodrich said. “The defense will be sitting down, I’ll be up there watching the offense because I feel like I did something when they go score and [stuff] like that. Then I just stay up there for the defense.”

When it comes to understanding the minute details that make the Brown-Smith duo so effective, few are as qualified as the cast of cornerbacks who train against them all season. Mac McCain, Zech McPhearson, and Goodrich are the usual candidates, and each has his own scouting report.

“A.J. is a nitty-gritty guy and Smitty is a finesse receiver,” McPhearson said. “It’s hard to get your hands on him. That’s what complements them, it’s hard to scheme against them. It’s not much you can really do about them unless you have two corners like we have with [Darius] Slay and [James] Bradberry. Smitty is way stronger than you would think. Especially at the top of his routes. He doesn’t move too much, and he’s really good at contested catches kind of like how A.J. is.”

McCain added, ““A lot of people don’t know, A.J. is quicker than people think. He’s not a big receiver, he’s quick in and out of his cuts. A.J. is really quick for his size.”

Both McCain and McPhearson have been practicing against Smith since they were all rookies last season. They agree on the biggest difference between Smith’s first season to now: He’s gaining more ground coming back to the ball this season.

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Goodrich spent time around Tee Higgins, Justyn Ross, and Hunter Renfrow at Clemson. The time he’s spent against Brown and Smith has been the most challenging, though.

In particular, Goodrich eventually debunked the reason Smith’s able to make contested catches despite his slim frame.

“Smitty’s got some long arms,” Goodrich said. “Him and A.J. both have strong hands, too, so when you get there you have to be violent. Sometimes it’s really hard to get the ball out, I’m not going to lie.”

Brown took in the final night of the regular season wearing a Mike Quick jersey.

The 25-year-old had just surpassed the Eagles great for the single-season franchise record for receiving yards and wanted to pay homage. He shared a moment with Quick, working on a postgame broadcast just outside the locker room at Lincoln Financial Field, and asked him to sign his jersey.

“It means a lot to leave my footprint on this organization,” Brown said at the time. “There were a lot of great receivers before me. For me to do it the first year, it means the world.”

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Brown and Smith not only each claimed franchise records in 2022, but also established themselves as one of the best receiving tandems in the league. Brown finished third in yards per route run, tied with Waddle, according to Pro Football Focus. Smith ranked 18th, tied with DeAndre Hopkins.

Only the Miami Dolphins joined the Eagles with two receivers in the top 20 of the metric, which shows how efficient qualifying receivers are at generating offense.

Standing in the locker room wearing a division title hat earlier this month, Brown said he was more fixated on the games to come, starting with this weekend.

“You want me to be honest?” Brown said. “I want more. It’s cool for the moment, but the past couple years, I gave my hat to my daughter. I’ll give this one to her, I’m trying to continue giving her more hats, because there’s two more hats I’m trying to get.”

“I know it’s a new season, and I’m ready for it.”