The Eagles have found their quarterback of the future in Carson Wentz, there is no doubt to that. Finding help around him has been a thorn in their side to this point. Last season, the wide receiver combination of Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor and Dorial Green-Beckham greatly underperformed and were extremely inconsistent. Matthews led the team out of the slot with 73 receptions, 804 yards but a measly three touchdowns. Green-Beckham and Agholor were tied for second on the team with a weak 36 receptions and only two touchdowns each. Altogether, the wide receivers last season only caught eight touchdowns (one by Josh Huff who isn’t even on the team anymore), no receiver had 1,000 yards and they were all plagued by frequent dropped passes.
For Carson Wentz to become effective and lead the team to winning again, he needs help around him and the wide receiving core is crucial to his development. Year two of Wentz and head coach Doug Pederson is pivotal on development and growth and the Eagles have made some great additions at the receiver position to aid in the progression for 2017.
The State of the Philadelphia Eagles Wide Receivers
2017 Current Philadelphia Eagles Wide Receivers
Jordan Matthews
Nelson Agholor
Dorial Green-Beckham
Paul Turner
Bryce Treggs
David Watford
Marcus Johnson
Greg Ward
Alshon Jeffery (FA from Chicago)
Torrey Smith (FA from San Francisco)
Mack Hollins (2017 fourth round pick)
Shelton Gibson (2017 fifth round pick)
So far, the Eagles have made big moves to improve the wide receiver corps for next season. They signed arguably the biggest wide receiver free agent this offseason in Alshon Jeffery. In his six seasons, Jeffery has established himself as one of the game’s most dominant and impactful deep threat wide outs. His big frame, combined with his speed down the field make him the big play, down the field threat the Eagles were looking to give Carson Wentz.
Torrey Smith comes over from some underwhelming years in abysmal San Francisco, but still has blistering speed and quickness. He won a Super Bowl with Baltimore and was the 49ers top target for several years. While Jeffery adds the big play, goal line lob receiver, Smith is the sideline and middle field threat with his speed and route running.
Hollins and Gibson were two mid-round picks in this year’s draft who could become the franchise’s next young stars, since Jeffery and Smith are only here on one-year contracts.
2017 Projected Philadelphia Eagles Wide Receivers and Outlook
- Alshon Jeffery
- Torrey Smith
- Jordan Matthews
- Shelton Gibson
- Mack Hollins
- Dorial Green-Beckham
- Paul Turner
What the Eagles have on their roster now is who they will be selecting from to start the year. The biggest roster move expected from now until the start of the season is for Nelson Agholor to pack his bags and get cut. He has been given too much time to develop to no avail, he has serious off-the-field issues and he was a Chip Kelly pick who needs to go and make room for a fresh start. Even though Matthews had a bad year last season, he is still a serviceable to good slot receiver and if he can just improve on the drops, he can be solid. Turner was stellar in last season’s preseason and if he plays like it again, he deserves a spot on the opening day roster. Ward, Johnson and Watford are all tossups, all potentially making the practice squad.
The biggest thing to expect from the wide receivers next season is more consistency and less dropped passes. Jeffery should have a bounce back season, playing in a contract year. Smith is a hard worker who needed a fresh start in a resurgent city with a franchise quarterback and Wentz should get him and Jeffery the ball often. Hollins will be a nice addition, but will have to wait behind Jeffery for at least a year and learn from one of the game’s best deep threat players. Gibson is the wild card. He has huge potential to take snaps away from Matthews in the slot with his speed and play making ability. Watch for the fifth-round pick to make a big impact next season.
Overall, the receiving corps will have a significant bounce back season compared to 2016’s lackluster performances. Jeffery and Smith should be awesome one and two pass catchers on the outside. Gibson and Hollins will be nice additions this year but will have more of an impact in years to come. If all goes well, there is a good chance we could see Smith and Jeffery back in Philly after 2017, especially if Wentz develops good chemistry with both.
