Ready As He’ll Ever Be

PHILADELPHIA – Don’t get ready. Stay ready.

That’s been the longtime motto of Eagles rookie wide receiver Ainias Smith, who inherited this empowering message from his parents at a young age.

In many ways, Smith, a fifth-round pick in April, encapsulates what it means to always be prepared, as the 23-year-old joined the fray in Week 8 against the Bengals after he missed the first six games of the season from an ankle injury suffered late in the summer.

Smith didn’t immediately hit the ground running, instead having to work through some early growing pains while building confidence. That’s common among rookies.

Once he started stacking days during the back stretch of training camp and capitalizing on opportunities during the preseason, Smith not only showcased assuredness but also a hardened mental makeup.

Smith never appeared to get in his own head, overthink, or even allow doubt to creep into his thinking.

Instead, he was routinely among the first players to take the field every morning under the scorching summer sun and stayed late to log some extra work on the JUGS machine, remaining committed to the daily grind of improvement.

The time away during the rehabilitation process afforded him the opportunity to come up for air and catch his breath, as well as see the game from a different perspective.

The game slowed down for Smith, enough to where he handled the ball twice in his second NFL game and played a career-high 18 offensive snaps in the Eagles’ 34-6 win in Dallas.

In his opportunities, Smith is averaging about nine snaps per game. And much like his pre-draft scouting report, Smith plays bigger than his listed 5-foot-9, 176-pound size.

Smith, who appears to have a red zone package, doesn’t get the ball much, but his physicality and willingness to mix it up as a blocker resembles the way former All Pro receiver Steve Smith played the game.

Always sporting a wide smile and upbeat personality, Smith has finally found his footing.

And as head coach Nick Sirianni has said, not everybody’s role is the same, but everybody’s role is vitally important. Now that he’s found his footing, Smith is carving out his.

The Eagles on Sunday night will be without starting wideout Devonta Smith (hamstring) against the Los Angeles Rams, perhaps clearing a spot for Ainias Smith get more playing time.

On Friday, ahead of the team’s Saturday flight to Los Angeles, I caught up with Ainias Smith at his locker stall to check in on his rookie campaign and learn more about him.

GETTY IMAGES: After a tough start to his rookie year, Ainias Smith is in a good place and ready to a contributor.

Andrew: So, I understand you’re skilled in doing backflips? What’s the backstory there?

Ainias: [Laughs] “Yeah, I got kinda a little skill of that. Growing up, I was just messing around, doing little handstands, little cartwheels. Then one day, I just decided that I was gonna try to flip. And then I kind of overdid it – like, I fell on my butt – but after that, I had learned … ‘Yeah, you’re not able to over-spin.’ And I started flipping from then.”

Andrew: If you could play another sport, it would be baseball, specifically left field and shortstop for the Phillies?

Ainias: “Oh, yeah! For sure.”

Andrew: Do you have a baseball background?

Ainias: “I do have a baseball background. I actually stopped playing my freshman year of high school, ’cause my pops, he was saying I had to lock in on one sport. So, I had just stuck to running track that year, stopped playing baseball. Then I tried to come back again. My senior year of high school, ended up trying out –  I made the team – but then I just decided not to do it, ’cause I was like, ‘Shoot, track is coming up. I’m just gonna go ahead and run track.’ But, yeah, definitely can play baseball. For sure.”

Andrew: Talk to me about your family’s organization, the Heavenbound Christian League.

Ainias: “It’s a non-profit organization. Basically, you can almost call it like a youth ministry. We’ve been running the organization for, like, 25-plus years now. Started off in our garage – well, my dad’s garage at the time – and then, shoot, now we’ve grown right now, going out into the Missouri City community and whatnot and really just trying to affect people’s lives. Affect kid’s lives.

“Our main focus is basically to get people saved. And we take, basically, our spiritual background, and try to spread the word of God to other people. And that’s really our whole mission with that. On top of that, of course, the athletic part of everything … you come in and get your work in for, like, an hour. We have summer camps, three-week camps, that we do during the summer for the kids to be able to come to, whether it’s high school kids or elementary kids. There’s two different camps. And then on top of all of that, man, we have an after-school camp that we run, also. And that’s been going real well for us this year. So, really just trying to give back, man. Trying to bless the community and give back. For sure.”

Andrew: At this stage of your career, where do you feel you’ve made the greatest strides?

Ainias: “Man, just continue to get better each and every day, honestly. The off-the-field things is where I feel like I’ve made the biggest strides, for sure. Because without having your body right, without doing the things necessary to get yourself ready to play on those Sundays, then you’re not gonna be ready. So, my motto – well, my parents’ motto – was always, ‘Don’t get ready; stay ready.’ So, really just trying to take the initiative to do the necessary things to make sure my body’s right. Doing the right things necessary with nutrition, ice tubs and stuff like that. Treatments and stuff like that. And really just staying disciplined in that area so I’ll be ready for Sundays.”

Andrew: Anyone in particular that’s taken you under their wing?

Ainias: “Uh, shoot, man. I guess you could say that. It’s been a lot of people — I’ve been getting a lot of love lately from the team – guys like Parris Campbell, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, the whole receiver room, honestly. And then, you could look at guys like Kenny Gainwell and Saquon Barkley, those type of guys. Leaders of the team, and shoot, they’re always willing to help me out. So, it’s definitely lovely, for sure.”

Andrew: What’s on your pregame playlist?

Ainias: “Man, gospel music. Gospel music. Before the game, I’m always listening to gospel music, and right before we go out, I’ll probably turn on some of my dawg’s playlist that he’s got. A little underground music and whatnot, that people don’t really know about. But that’s about it.”

Andrew: Have you found a pregame routine that works for you?

Ainias: “For sure. Always try to get there, like, three hours before the game. Get in there, get dressed and whatnot, start rolling my feet out, stretching and all that. Then I’ll go to the field, do me a little warmup, come back inside, do some more stretching and probably get a quick, little massage. And then, that warmup, that’s really the key component for me to go ahead and feel like I’m ready for the game. So, I’ll go through a series of stretches, a series of dynamic stretching — a few little movements that I feel like I’m gonna be needing to do throughout the game — and come back, get ready to put the pads on and come back out.”

Andrew: What have you learned about yourself this season?

Ainias: “Man, I’ve learned a lot. I ain’t gonna lie. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned the real of life, I guess you could say. Going through college, and a little bit of high school, you kinda get things handed to you a little bit, just being a football player. And you get certain privileges that some people may not get. And then once you get to real life – where I feel like I’m basically at now – you start to learn a lot of things.

One, I feel like I’ve dealt with adversity, but dealing with adversity the way that I have to deal with it now has been a little different, and it definitely groomed me into, I feel like, an even better man today. And then on top of all of that, man, just the strength that I have for myself – but it wasn’t given to me. I really learned Jesus through this entire process. And who he really is.

Now granted, I’ve always – well, I felt like I had a relationship with God – but I really wasn’t seeking his hands the way that I am now. And with that, I feel like in certain areas, since I was given a lot of things, I used to go about things like almost taking the shortcut route just because I didn’t feel like it was always necessary to do the extra things. And even though I’ll workout hard and do extra stuff off the field for football, I really wasn’t doing the things necessary outside of that to go ahead and benefit my life for Jesus Christ. And now that I’m at that place, I feel like I’ve grown a lot. For sure.”

Andrew: You guys in the receiver room seem like you’re all really close. How would you describe the dynamic in the room?

Ainias: “It’s definitely tight. Almost like a brotherhood, for sure. I can call all those guys anytime and I know they’ll pick up the phone. A few of the guys have been giving me Christmas gifts already. It’s crazy. So, I’m definitely enjoying the vibes with the guys, and hopefully just continue to get better.”

Andrew: What gifts did you get?!

Ainias: “I got me some slides, I got me some new cleats, new pair of shoes. So, I told them boys I’m gonna have to go ahead and give them something, too. So, we’ll see.

– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com.