Let’s be honest: it would be more of a surprise if Philadelphia Eagles reporters did not ask general manager Howie Roseman about wide receiver A.J. Brown and a potential trade.
It’s been the subject all offseason, with all signings pointing towards the New England Patriots being the number one option to trade for Brown. Roseman had to respond to a question about Brown at the league meetings in Phoenix, Arizona, as he gave the exact same answer he had on the subject.
“I understand that there’s interest in the A.J. Brown story,” Roseman said via The Athletic’s Zach Berman. “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’ll go right back to that answer.”
Howie Roseman responds to A.J. Brown question
At least Roseman is consistent about it, as he refuses to change his tune on the matter. In reality, he is accurate in his answer, but most will see it as more of a non-answer.
It’s a tightrope kind of response for Roseman as he doesn’t want to give away that trade talks are happening, who is interested in Brown, or whether they are actually going to do it. Roseman is smarter than that and won’t tip his hand to the media.
After the first three weeks of free agency were silent on a Brown trade, all roads appear to be leading to June 2, the most important date to monitor. That’s the date when the Eagles will save $7 million and have a dead cap of about $20 million for Brown if they trade him away. Anything before that would result in the Eagles losing about $20 million in cap space.
Read more: 4 Eagles players who just lost their jobs and don’t know it yet
While it feels like it is more of a matter of when for the Eagles for a trade involving Brown, this won’t be a rushed job by Roseman. For now, Brown is a member of the team, and the rest will work itself out in the upcoming two months.