When AJ Brown was shipped to the New England Patriots on June 1, the immediate question in Philadelphia was simple: who picks up the slack?
DeVonta Smith is the obvious name. Makai Lemon arrives with a Biletnikoff-winning season at USC behind him.
Darius Cooper has already turned heads in camp. Hollywood Brown is in the mix too.
But after what Dontayvion Wicks showed at joint practice with the Patriots, another answer is starting to sound a lot louder.
Wicks, the fourth-year receiver the Eagles acquired from the Green Bay Packers earlier this offseason for a pair of draft picks, put together a rep that had Eagles legend Seth Joyner buzzing. On one route, Wicks beat Carlton Davis III so cleanly that Joyner couldn’t resist weighing in on social media.
“D**n, that's nasty!” Joyner wrote. “If he's running routes like that this year, the Birds WR corps might be very dangerous!”
That kind of praise carries weight, especially coming after a rep that highlighted exactly why Wicks has gotten attention. He entered the league known for size, speed, and his ability to win contested balls, but in Green Bay he became part of a crowded receiver picture. Brian Gutekunst eventually moved him to Philadelphia as part of a roster consolidation, and while that may have made sense for the Packers, it may have opened the door for the Eagles.
Damn, that's nasty! If he's running routes like that this year, the Birds WR corps might be very dangerous!
— Seth Joyner (@sethjoyner) August 20, 2026
On paper, Wicks might have settled in as Green Bay’s WR4 in 2026. In Philadelphia, though, he looks like he has a real shot to open Week 1 as the WR2. If the route-running he flashed in practice carries over into the season, the Eagles may have found a major piece for an offense trying to replace Brown’s production with a more balanced approach.
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Eagles Roster Debate Now Hinges On One More Veteran WR Move
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Hollins drew attention after a productive season with New England last year, and the appeal is obvious for a team still weighing its veteran depth at receiver. Whether Philadelphia actually pursues a deal like that remains unclear, but it is the kind of late-summer move that can reshape the back end of a roster and give the Eagles one more experienced option to sort through before Week 1. [Read more 🡒]