PHILADELPHIA – Eagles’ All-Pro receiver A.J. Brown needed the New Testament to explain what’s going on with the superstar’s role with the strangest successful team in a modern era that’s supposed to be defined by the passing game.
Philadelphia is winning at a historic rate in every conceivable way but the passing game, at least this season during the third 4-0 start in Nick Sirianni’s coaching career.
Frustrations boiled over in a very 2025 way.
The media-savvy Brown politely turned down interview requests after a 31-25 win in Tampa Bay, in which the WR1 snared just two receptions for seven yards.
Instead, Brown meshed the new school with the old school by taking to social media to drop Mark 6:11 on the football world.
“If you’re not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way,” the Boble verse reads.
In a literal sense, Brown did quietly withdraw in the Sunshine State, perhaps even shrugging his shoulders along the way before leaving the locker room.
For Generation Z, though, he shouted from the largest public square there is to at least intimate issues with either players, coaches, or both, in front of over four million views at last count, something that would lap most television shows in a fragmented media world.
It’s not hard to understand Brown’s frustrations and even harder to debate them, so Sirianni took the only path he could, understanding.
“Obviously, AJ is very important to this football team,” the coach said. “I know he wants to contribute. I know he wants to contribute and do the things that he’s capable of doing. But yeah, he wants to contribute to these wins, and he’s had a couple games where he hasn’t been able to, and for different reasons of why we haven’t in these games.
“But I question nothing about his desire to play great football, his desire to be a good teammate, his desire to be here.”
Sirianni didn’t say whether he has spoken to Brown specifically about his post on the X Platform but did say that the star receiver is “somebody I talk to on a daily basis.”
The Eagles won for the 20th time in 21 games Sunday against the Bucs, but their offense disappeared after the first half, and Jalen Hurts failed to complete a single pass after intermission.
Brown was targeted a team-high nine times in Week 4, and went 0-for-6 in the second half when many of the targets were dramatically off-line.
“We were really successful in the first half, played a really good first half, and wasn’t as successful as second half,” Sirianni said. “Had some negative plays, had some calls we want back, had some plays we’ll want back as players and coaches.”
In his fifth season as the Eagles’ mentor with unprecedented success on his resume, including a Super Bowl LIX championship, Sirianni has still had to deal with player frustration before, something that requires “open, honest communication,” according to the coach.
Sep 28, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni looks on from the sideline during the second quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
“I think it starts with the relationship that you build with the guys before anything,” Sirianni continued. “It’s always about being open and being honest. And it’s always about the relationship. Again, I know [Brown] wants to contribute to what we’re doing out there, especially when we had the second half that we had.”
During his first three seasons with the Eagles, Brown was named a second-team All-Pro three times and has had 1,496-yard and 1,456-yard seasons in 2022 and 2023. Last season, despite the greatest rushing effort in NFL history by Saquon Barkley, Brown still had 1,079 receiving yards while being limited to 13 games.
Over the first four games this season, Brown is at 14 receptions for 151 yards and a touchdown, No. 64 in the NFL entering Monday’s action. He’s on pace for only 641 yards.
To date, any of the trade rumors regarding Brown have been one-sided attempted manifestations from outside the organization, typically from Boston.
This schism feels different, and for the first time, it’s not as hard to envision Brown in a different uniform next season unless Sirianni and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo figure this out.
