Trade talk regarding Philadelphia Eagles star wide receiver A.J. Brown has remained rampant this offseason, particularly in connection with the New England Patriots as a suitor.
Inside Gillette Stadium, however, those talks have apparently not been as common of late.
“A.J. Brown is a member of the Eagles, as [Eagles’ GM] Howie [Roseman] mentioned yesterday. We haven’t had any conversations about anything regarding that in a long time,” Patriots Executive Vice President of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf
said Monday on the Up & Adams Show.
Speaking Sunday at the annual NFL League Meetings in Arizona, Roseman offered a similar blanket answer.
“I understand that there’s interest in the A.J. Brown story. I, unfortunately, don’t have a home under a rock,” he said. “But my answer to any question on A.J. Brown is A.J. Brown is a member of the Eagles. From my perspective, anything you ask me about A.J. Brown, I’m going to go right back to that answer. But I understand the interest. I put on TV and I see that there’s interest, but my answer is A.J. Brown is a member of the Philadelphia Eagles.”
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni echoed those remarks Monday morning: “Nothing’s changed there. A.J.’s an Eagle.”
Brown’s frustrations in Philadelphia the past two seasons have been well documented, fueling trade speculation. His contract has continued to complicate any move as a trade before June 1 would cost the Eagles a dead cap hit north of $40 million, compared to roughly $20 million after.
Entering his age-29 season, Brown is coming off of his fourth straight 1,000-yard season. The three-time Pro Bowler has continued to maintain a relationship with Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel, who drafted him back in 2019 with the Tennessee Titans.
“I’ve watched him grow. I’ve watched him mature. I’m proud of him, proud of the father that he is. I’m proud of the husband,” Vrabel said of Brown at the NFL Combine last month. “That has nothing to do with where he plays or where he played. Those are the things that are important. We reach out and text each other during the good things that happen to each other.”
