You'll recall, Smith unloaded on Jeudy prior to the Denver Broncos vs. Kansas City Chiefs "Thursday Night Football" game last week ... going off after he said the Denver star wouldn't accept his apology for some words he had previously said about the wideout on his podcast.

Smith, while live on-air for the NFL Network, called Jeudy "just a guy" ... adding that he believed Jeudy was "a tier three" player.

The harsh comments quickly went viral -- but when Jeudy was asked to go in-depth about them in front of his locker this week, he didn't throw any barbs back.

Instead, he explained that he didn't initially accept Smith's apology because he didn't realize one was coming.

"One thing I do agree on, I feel like I should have just listened to what he had to say," the 24-year-old former Alabama star said. "But at the same time, I'm going back to my roots, and once someone talks bad about you behind your back, you can't talk to -- don't expect to come to them in person and think everything's going to be OK at the end of the day."

"But, like I said, if I would've known he would've came and apologized and stuff like that, it would have been a whole different story or reaction and he wouldn't have said what he said."

It's been a rough year for Jeudy outside of the Smith drama -- he started the season injured ... and has tallied only 20 receptions since he's returned to the field.