Eagles receiving duo A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith deliver down the stretch vs. Packers
Brown had a 67-yard touchdown while Smith had seven receptions, as both made crunch-time plays in Brazil.
SÃO PAULO, Brazil — Standing in a reimagined locker room at Corinthians Arena typically reserved for athletes of a different sport, DeVonta Smith compared the singular experience of playing an NFL game in a Brazilian soccer stadium to his days in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
“That felt like college,” Smith said in Jalen Hurts’ direction. “It was loud.”
The Eagles escaped their season-opener with a 34-29 win largely thanks to contributions from the dynamic trio of Smith, A.J. Brown, and Saquon Barkley in the game’s key moments. While Smith’s jogged memories on Friday night were because of the similarities in volume between Southeastern Conference crowds and the 47,236 fans in a stadium designed to funnel noise down to field level, there also was the familiar sight of the former Alabama wide receiver coexisting with a litany of talented skill players in a shootout win.
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Smith finished with seven catches for 84 yards, including two crucial receptions on the Eagles’ final drive to keep the offense on the field. Finishing with five catches for 119 yards and a touchdown, Brown’s biggest play came in the third quarter, when he got past Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander for a 67-yard touchdown catch to give the Eagles a second-half lead.
“They’re pretty damn good,” Hurts said when asked about Brown and Smith being the best receiving duo in the league. “I’d say they’re the best. It’s the way they come in to work every day. They’re intentional about the little details that they do, and it showed up big time tonight. It showed up big time in crucial moments. They made some big-time plays that changed the game, and that’s what it’s all about.”
After starting the game with two dubious turnovers, the Eagles offense found its stride largely thanks to the steadying nature of Barkley’s rushing attempts and some timely catches from Brown and Smith. Toward the end of the first quarter, Brown caught a slant route for an 8-yard gain on third-and-2 to keep the Eagles from starting the game without a first down in their first three series.
After finishing last season sidelined with a knee injury that held him out of the team’s playoff loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brown said making an impact early helped him rediscover his rhythm.
“It was really important for me just to get going,” Brown said. “I didn’t play the last playoff game, and I was kind of in my head a little bit. Just kind of needed that first tackle to get me going again.”
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Alexander drew Brown as his primary assignment and followed the star receiver for most of the game. The two got into a brief shoving match midway through the second quarter, which preceded Brown catching a short completion and shedding Alexander’s tackle attempt before working upfield for a 13-yard gain.
The following series, Brown got past Alexander with a double move, working out toward the sideline before cutting upfield to break free for his 67-yard touchdown.
While Brown’s touchdown helped the Eagles keep pace with the Packers in the second half, Smith’s biggest moments were pivotal in maintaining it. The 25-year-old managed two catches with the Eagles behind the sticks on their final drive, the first coming on a second-and-13 when Hurts found him on a shallow crossing route. Smith ran through two tackles and fell forward to get the first down and forced Green Bay to use its first timeout of the second half.
Two plays later, Smith iced the game with an 11-yard catch off a slant route, which forced the Packers use their final timeout. The Eagles ground down the clock with a final drive that spanned 7 minutes, 25 seconds before ending with a field goal.
“Jalen and DeVonta connected on some huge plays,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “That’s tough football. Four-minute football is tough football.
“Any time you’re at the end of the game, we love for the ball to be in the offense’s hands. That was the talk the whole time. Put the game away. Don’t give them a chance to get anything.”