Eagles’ Quez Watkins adjusts to a new position behind A.J. Brown, DeVonta

A.J. was acquired by the Eagles in a trade. Brown, Quez Watkins “got in his head,” as his father called it.

“You have to understand Quez — this is how he is,” Terrance Williams said recently. “He felt like the pressure was on. He’s got somebody with the big hype — A.J. Then, you got [quarterback Jalen] They hurt them too [are] Calling each other best friends. He felt like it was going to be one of those situations that it’s going to be These are themYou know what you are doing?

“It bothered him mentally for a minute to think about it, not knowing how the season was going to go.”

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While his worst fears might have been confirmed through the first half of the season — at least individually — Watkins remained patient, and over the last four games he has nearly doubled his receptions.

He’s unlikely to ever see as many targets as Brown and DeVonta Smith, but the 24-year-old now knows the pass distribution has had little to do with favoritism. None when Hurts is close to them all and they have formed a group of their own.

“That’s his right-hand man best friend. That’s his college best friend,” Watkins said this week, pointing at Brown and Smith a few locker stalls down at the NovaCare Complex. “And me, I guess, I’m his NFL best friend. So, we all have our moments together.

“And now that we’re all together, it’s like a group of friends and we all connect.”

Despite their place in the pecking order ahead of him, Watkins said he’s been able to confide in Brown and Smith whenever he’s been frustrated by game plans in which he’s rarely involved. But it’s been his close circle of family, mostly his father, he said, that has kept him centered in his third season.

When Smith was drafted in the first round last year, or when Brown arrived and received a $100 million contract, or when Hurts’ passes weren’t coming his way, or when he fumbled late in the loss to Washington, Williams offered sage advice that wasn’t always what the receiver wanted to hear.

And when the football started going Watkins’ way — as they did last Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, when he caught an important 30-yard touchdown pass — his father couldn’t be faulted for harping on his consistent message with a postgame text.

Remember the person who told you to take your time with the second half of this season? You’re day 1, POPS!!!

After Green Bay’s win by 40 to 33, Nick Sirianni gave Watkins a game ball. After the Brown acquisition, the Eagles coach said publicly what he had been telling his players individually: that the pass game would run first through the former Titans receiver, Smith, and tight end Dallas Goedert, and that Watkins would “have to take advantage of the opportunities” he got.

In essence, he would fall one rung after he was third on the team receiving in 2021. He caught 43 pass for 647 yards and scored a touchdown.

“I remember it vividly,” Watkins said. “He was telling me they’re bringing in A.J. and not necessarily that I was taking a backseat, but these are the guys they’re looking to get the ball to. Be patient. We’re going to get you the ball, keep you involved, stuff like that.”

But that isn’t quite what happened. Watkins was a distant fourth with 11 targets compared with Brown’s 63, Smith’s 51, and Goedert’s 41 through the first seven games. He caught six passes for 88 yards and one touchdown.

Watkins returned kicks were a way for the Eagles to make up the shortfall, but they failed to do so and he was replaced by Week 3. Other than that, he did contribute by drawing pass interference penalties in Washington’s opening game and clearing out space with his deep routes.

But most importantly, the team won.

“Not getting the ball — it creates frustration. It does,” Watkins said. “But getting the win, it kind of makes it less painful. But I would just call it a little frustration.”

As many players, Watkins avoided the pre-NFL challenges of his peers. Williams was his son’s coach from age 5 to 12. He had him play quarterback and run back to get as many of the ball as possible. Watkins was able to convert from receiver due to his speed and lean body.

It wasn’t until his freshman year at Southern Miss that he wasn’t the unquestioned No. He was the No. 1 at his position. But that didn’t last long, and by his junior year, Watkins led Conference USA in receiving yards even though he was suspended for the first two games.

Watkins had little to no adversity on the field. However, off the field he was faced with some difficulties. He was forced to drop out of school and enroll in a junior university after falling behind academically. He would eventually return — and serve the suspension — but he hindered his predraft value and wasn’t selected until the sixth round.

“He accepted it. He knew he didn’t do like he should have done as far as his schooling,” Williams said. “I’m about sure that’s what dropped him down as far as the draft.”

Watkins, stuck behind several receivers, including first-rounder Jalen Reagor, didn’t get many opportunities as a rookie. However, Sirianni and the Eagles’ new staff saw Watkins as a possible slot receiver.

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Watkins took off when Reagor, and other contenders, stumbled. Sirianni said that Smith was already available for the Eagles the following offseason. Brown’s acquisition offered an opportunity to upgrade.

“It’s a business. These people make business moves,” Williams said. “They tell you one thing one minute what they said they’re going to do, how they’re going to keep doing what they’re doing, but it doesn’t always play out that way.”

From Brown’s perspective, he had a bumpy road upon his arrival, as he had to earn the others’ trust. During training camp, Hurts, his three top receivers, were seen in the building constantly together.

However, Smith and Brown were able to see the end of the video from the top of NovaCare’s roof, with Smith as their quarterback, before the Eagles had even released the hype video.

Watkins claimed that he had seen the scene, but that his concern about his role was greater once the season started.

“I can see why with me and Jalen so close,” Brown said of Watkins’ worries. “But we want to win and we’re going to do [what’s] Best for the team. The friend part doesn’t affect anything. Sometimes, I had to be a decoy and take a backseat.

“I definitely feel it, but I just don’t feel it as often.”

Watkins’ turn finally came against Washington last month. He caught 4 of 4 passes for 80 yards, including a 50-yard grab late in the fourth quarter that seemed destined to give the Eagles the lead — until he was stripped from behind.

He looked brave after the game. Watkins, who is the man to beat, put on a brave face postgame Legend tattooed across his back, doesn’t lack for confidence. But his father saw the pain and immediately texted him.

Don’t Beat Yourself Up Son!! I know you, DON’T!!!

The Colts won the next week and he caught two of his passes for 31 yards. He was able to catch 3 of 5 passes for 35 yard and a touchdown against the Packers.

“In the football aspect, he knows me best,” Watkins said of his father. “He’s always been that coach mindset for me off the field.”

Williams’ central message is simple: Control what you can control. In a few weeks, Goedert will return. Browns, Smiths, and others will continue to enter the building. Watkins could be eligible to a contract extension for next offseason, however it is unlikely the Eagles would pay Watkins any more than the top 2 depth charts.

He said he isn’t thinking that far ahead.

“Money does play a big part once an organization invests in you; they think about you in a different way, and of course, they want to get you the ball. They want to show the world why they paid you,” Watkins said. “But I feel like my time is still to come.”

Inquirer Eagles beat reporters EJ Smith and Josh Tolentino preview the team’s Week 13 game against the Tennessee Titans. You can watch the video at Inquirer.com/EaglesGameday