Maryland Football: Torrey Smith impresses in Eagles preseason game

Torrey Smith had very forgettable years with the San Francisco 49ers the past two seasons.

After signing with the Philadelphia Eagles this offseason, Smith failed to be targetted during the team’s first two preseason games. However, that all changed on Thursday evening.

In the first quarter of Philadelphia’s game against the Miami Dolphins, quarterback Carson Wentz dropped back to pass and stepped into a deep throw. Wentz hit Smith on a 50-yard touchdown pass in which the former Maryland wideout got completely behind the defense and was wide open.

Ironically, Smith burned former Eagles cornerback Byron Maxwell off the line of scrimmage, which allowed him to get so open. The 50-yard receptions was the only one of the game for Smith, but it was arguably the most lethal play for Philadelphia.

The Eagles had a woeful year in terms of the wide receiver position during the 2016 season. The team ended up heavily restocking their cupboard at the position in the offseason by adding former Chicago Bears star Alshon Jeffery, Smith, and Mack Hollins (North Carolina) and Shelton Gibson (West Virginia) through the NFL Draft.

Smith was brought in to be the team’s primary deep threat. He’s averaging 17.0 yards-per-catch over the course of his NFL career.

In addition, he’s caught at least one 50-plus yard pass in each of his six NFL seasons.

The former Terp should be utilized quite a bit down the field by Wentz. Jeffery and tight end Zach Ertz will likely garner most of the intermediate targets in the middle of the field.

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If Smith sees increased targets in 2017, he could easily return to form and be a huge part of the Eagles’ offensive attack.