When Ainias Smith reflects on the journey to his first NFL regular-season game last Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals, he credits his last few injury-riddled months as “the fire.”

It started in the spring. Smith, the Eagles’ fifth-round pick out of Texas A&M, sat out organized team activities while recovering from a stress fracture in his tibia. The 5-foot-9, 176-pound wide receiver had a rough start in camp while he was fighting the drops. When the preseason began, he rolled his surgically repaired ankle against the New England Patriots, an injury he said he further aggravated in the preseason finale against the Minnesota Vikings.

The injury landed Smith on the bench for the first eight weeks of the season. Despite the challenges that characterized his first few months as an Eagle, Smith emphasized that the situation has improved his mental strength.

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“God had to throw me through the fire so he could show me that I can withstand anything if I put my faith and trust in him,” Smith said Wednesday. “And I feel like that’s what I had to go through.”

With football off the table for nearly a month and a half, Smith poured his energy into the basics. He focused on the details of running, from pushing off the ground correctly to using the correct stride length. He did calisthenics, a form of bodyweight strength training, in an effort to correct the imbalances in his legs that arose from the injuries. He worked on improving his hands, especially when it came to catching the ball.

By the third or fourth week of his stint on the bench, Smith said he started to feel like himself again in his moves. The limp with which he made the team with his back in the spring was a distant problem.

“Just to be able to feel that confidence knowing that you can kick that leg out and do certain things that you want to do, it feels great, for sure,” Smith said.

In Week 8, Smith had a feeling he would be activated in time for the game against the Bengals, but he wasn’t completely sure. He got the answer when he arrived at the NovaCare Complex last Wednesday. Smith saw that his jersey no. 82 is called up for some games in the game plan, indicating he will make his regular season debut.

“It was crazy,” Smith said. “So to go all week knowing I’m only going to be in the game plan for a little bit, then to go out there and take reps with those was crazy.”

Smith took eight offensive snaps against the Bengals in the Eagles’ 37–17 victory, serving as the pre-snap motion man in each of those games. Even though he never touched the ball, Smith pulled out every synonym for “excited” in the thesaurus to describe his emotions surrounding his first game, from “crazy” to “blessed.” His teammates, who have been with him throughout his journey, were equally happy for him.

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“So proud of Ainias,” AJ Brown said Thursday. “I’ll give him his flowers. He definitely had some growing pains when he first got here. But I’m happy for him, man. He did a great job. At that moment, he remained truly closed. You could tell he really wanted this. And that’s hard for a young person just to be stuck, not being able to practice. But he was trying his best. They had to tell him, “Slow down.”

“He’s done a great job and hopefully he’ll touch the ball at some point and make the most of it. We’re happy for him.”

Smith appreciated the support of his teammates throughout this process, noting that they never turned their backs on him when he was injured and continued to treat him like their brother. Now, he’s looking forward to building on last week’s performance as he continues to figure out his role at the NFL level.

“Honestly, I just keep doing what I have to do for the team to win, you know what I’m saying?” Smith said. “To help the team win, whether that’s getting the ball on special teams, whether it’s getting the ball on speed, on passing routes, running the ball, it doesn’t matter, you know what I’m saying?

“I think the next step for me is to get on the field a little bit more.”

Injury report

Dallas Goedert (hamstring) and Darius Slay (groin) missed practice for the second straight day. Otherwise, the health of the team continues to improve. Mekhi Becton cleared the concussion protocol and was a full participant in Thursday’s practice.

Jalen Carter (shoulder) and Landon Dickerson (knee) returned to practice Thursday after sitting out Wednesday. Carter was listed on the injury report as a full participant, while Dickerson was limited. Albert Okwuegbunam (abdomen; injured reserve) continues to practice at full capacity as he moves into the final week of his 21-day training window.