One of the Oregon Ducks’ most exciting — and surprising — additions this offseason was Texas A&M transfer wide receiver Evan Stewart. 247Sports final transfer rankings lists Stewart as the No. 5 overall transfer this offseason, and this weekend, Pro Football Focus compared him to Philadelphia Eagles WR DeVonta Smith.
Smith played four years of college football at Alabama, where he became the fourth non-quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy this century, winning in 2020. Despite a lean frame, Smith excelled in college as a wideout and in the slot, using his elite speed and his one-of-a-kind route-running to dice up opposing defenses.
Dalton Wasserman, the PFF writer who compared Stewart to Smith, singled out Stewart’s route-running as parallel to the Eagles wideout. Stewart only has two seasons of college experience, and he dealt with injury issues during his time as an Aggie, but if Stewart’s route-running at Oregon is half as effective as Smith’s was at Alabama, he’ll be a perfect match with Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein’s offense.
Evan Stewart has some DeVonta Smith in him👀 pic.twitter.com/TLLdSJYNaY
— PFF College (@PFF_College) June 16, 2024
At the top of the Ducks’ WR depth chart, next to Stewart, are Tez Johnson and Traeshon Holden. To oversimplify each of their styles, Johnson is a speed demon and Holden is a big, athletic pass catcher. That three-WR combination gives Stewart space to fill the X-receiver spot (No. 1 wideout). At the X, Stewart would have plenty of downfield big-play potential and frequent short targets from Dillon Gabriel as a reliable checkdown receiver.