Is Kirby Smart ‘protecting’ Georgia football WRs after brutal scrimmage? Analyst thinks so

Georgia football is putting in the work during fall camp, but all anyone can talk about following their first scrimmage is the wide receiver room. Reports of a drop-fest have sent waves of panic through the fanbase, but head coach Kirby Smart is singing a slightly different tune.

When asked about the receivers, Smart kept things positive, though he didn’t exactly hand out any gold stars.

“If you said am I pleased with their work habits and what they’re doing, absolutely I am,” Smart told reporters. “I wouldn’t say anybody in the room is dominating by any means. There are young players that are coming on fast.”

Kirby Smart has been protective of UGA's wide receivers after reports of a lot of drops after the first scrimmage. On our show DawgNation at Large @MansellKaylee and @Kconnorriley say it's clear Kirby is being protective. Does this mean Kirby is worried?

Watch DawgNation at… pic.twitter.com/02dmR5PotI

— DawgNation (@DawgNation) August 20, 2026

However, some observers aren’t buying the coach’s optimism. On the “DawgNation at Large” show, analyst Kaylee Mansell suggested Smart is simply playing defense for his players.

“To me, part of this feels like damage control a little bit because he knows that the primary talk coming out of the last scrimmage was all the drops that the wide receivers had,” Mansell said. “If what we heard last week is true, things have got to get better, but I feel like this is Kirby’s way of sort of protecting that group from mass criticism.”

While you won’t find a box score for a closed preseason scrimmage to confirm the exact number of drops, the noise surrounding the position is impossible to ignore. Georgia has to replace a ton of production on the outside, and the pressure is squarely on the unproven guys to step up.

Smart is famous for demanding perfection, so his decision to shield his receivers rather than publicly rub their noses in it speaks volumes. Whether this is true damage control or genuine belief in their work habits, the Bulldogs’ pass-catchers have a massive spotlight on them. If they want to help Georgia chase another national title, they just need to catch the football when the real games finally kick off.

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