The Philadelphia Eagles wanted to trade wide receiver A.J. Brown and on Monday did just that. Call that the NFL's worst kept secret the past six months.
Brown is going to the New England Patriots to reunite with his former Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel, who now coaches the Patriots. Brown's new team was the second-worst-kept secret in the NFL the past few months Vrabel loved Brown when they were together in Nashville.
The Eagles announced they have agreed to send Brown to New England in exchange for a 2028 first-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round selection. The compensation package was decided early Monday.
Hallelujah, something we didn't already know!
Brown will need to pass a physical in order for the deal to be finalized. That hasn't always been an easy thing, as Maxx Crosby and the Baltimore Ravens proved earlier this offseason, so this isn't done, done until that physical is passed, passed.
The reason everyone knew this was going to happen is, well, the signs were unmistakable.
The timing of this trade was obvious because at 4 p.m. on Monday the salary cap implications for trading Brown became less onerous for the Eagles. They went from possibly carrying a $43.4 million dead-money charge to make a trade to shrinking that to $16.3 million based on NFL June 1 salary cap rules.
The Patriots inherit the final four years of Brown’s contract while the Eagles will split their remaining cap hit over the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
Brown immediately becomes Drake Maye’s No. 1 receiver in New England. The Patriots are hoping to take the next logical step after playing in the Super Bowl last season but losing to the Seattle Seahawks.
Adding Brown, who has six 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his seven-year career, seems like a solid step toward doing that.