The San Francisco 49ers' potential injury loss is the Philadelphia Eagles', and specifically, DeVonta Smith's, gain.
Per the 49ers' official X account, "(LT) Trent Williams and (CB) Renardo Green are listed questionable for Sunday." With Green potentially out, that could force San Francisco to stick Deommodore Lenoir on A.J. Brown for the bulk of the game to limit his big-play potential on the outside.
That could set up open season for Smith, who would be covered by either Chase Lucas or Darrell Luter Jr. to compensate for Green's absence. That is, of course, assuming Jalen Hurts can rekindle what made him great until the 2025 season.
There's every reason to believe that'll be the case, too. After throwing 45 under-center passes during his first four seasons, he threw 42 in 2025. Hurts also involved himself in the run game less while throwing 93 more passes this season.
That was by design. Kevin Patullo deliberately called games that way, as Hurts revealed this past week. It had to be that way after Smith and Brown made it clear early in the season that they weren't happy with their output.
“Nothing on offense is going good right now and I think that’s where the frustration comes at with a lot of us,” Smith said in October. “Not that we just want the ball and things like that. We want the offense to be moving in the right direction and right now we’re not doing that. The defense is carrying us. The defense is playing lights out. The special teams is doing some good things right now. Offensively, we have to be better.”
These frustrations faded over the season. In fact, after Smith said that, he had two 100-plus-yard performances in three weeks.
In hindsight, that accountability might have set the stage for something great.
DeVonta Smith May Be Set Up for Big Playoffs as Eagles WR1
The Eagles made history in 2025 by having two receivers, Smith and Brown, go for over 1,000 receiving yards. Only one of them looks like a lock to remain in Philadelphia long-term, though.
Even if Green can play, the odds are slim that he's healthy. Facing a dinged-up, slightly slower version of Green could be just as beneficial as one of his backups being tasked with slowing Smith down. That only adds another layer of intrigue to Philadelphia's offensive attack that Patullo must exploit at every possible turn.
With Brown being a potential goner before the end of his contract, and a trade increasingly looking likely at some point, possibly this offseason, Smith could functionally begin to serve as WR1. Even if Brown is still the more physical threat and figures to draw more coverage.
That begins against the Niners in the wild-card round, facing a team that may be perfectly built for Smith to exploit if Lenoir spends his day following Brown around the field.