The Philadelphia Eagles enter the 2026 offseason facing far more questions than they anticipated just a year ago. What once felt like one of the most stable cores in the NFL is now in a weird spot, and a lot of it is due to wide receiver A.J. Brown.
Brown is a star, as I’ve said plenty of times, but he just isn’t the best teammate when it comes to acting properly.
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ESPN’s Tim McManus recently wrote about how the frustration followed Brown throughout much of the year, which now raises the question of whether he wants Jalen Hurts to be his quarterback long-term and if they work like they once did.
“Brown, 28, had a hard time hiding his frustration for the better part of the season and there were moments — including in the playoff loss to the 49ers, when the receiver had a pair of drops and finished with three catches for 25 yards on seven targets — that made it feel like his off-field angst had seeped into his on-field performance.
“There are ongoing questions about his compatibility with quarterback Jalen Hurts, and it’s fair to wonder whether his attitude toward his situation in Philly will change much given most of the primary actors (with the notable exception of offensive coordinator) are likely to remain the same in 2026,” he wrote.
Brown is under contract and remains an important piece of the roster, while Hurts is the franchise quarterback. Moving either is tough to justify, and 99% of the time, it’ll be the wide receiver.
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Can Hurts be better? No doubt, as anyone can, but Hurts doesn’t walk around throwing his teammates under the bus like Brown. If that trust isn’t there, it’ll have an impact on everyone and we’ve seen that.
A new offensive coordinator may help the system, but if the relationship between Hurts and Brown isn’t what it needs to be, he should be on his way out. Even if the OC comes in and thinks he can fix things, it’s still probably best to move on due to his comments and other actions.