A.J. Brown has downplayed any feud with the Philadelphia Eagles, and the coaching staff, but, four days before the team’s playoff game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, some of Brown’s actions raise suspicions.
On Friday, January 12, Brown deleted his X (formerly known as Twitter) account and scrubbed any mention of the Eagles from his Instagram.
The Eagles limp into the postseason having lost five of the final six games, as the No. 5 seed in the NFC, after jumping out to a 10-1 start to the season.
Over the past month, some of Brown’s teammates suggested that the 26-year-old star wide receiver was frustrated with head coach Nick Sirianni and the coaching staff, in the wake of not talking to reporters after Philadelphia’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals. During that game, Brown looked visibly frustrated on several plays.
“Any time you have bad body language from a leader like that, other guys see it, and it’s not good,” one veteran player told Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes.
There is always the chance that Brown is trying to focus on Monday night’s contest, and the Eagles’ impending playoff run.
However, brushing all mentions of the Eagles from his instagram page hints that there could be major issues brewing under the surface between Brown and the team. Especially since Brown last removed “Tennessee” from his Twitter biography in 2022 before ultimately being traded to Philadelphia.
Brown Previously Denied Feud with Eagles Coaches
Brown broke his silence on January 3, distancing himself from reports that there is any tension between him, head coach Nick Sirianni or the rest of the coaching staff.
“I’m a man,” Brown told reporters. “I can speak for myself, I was actually looking forward to seeing one of the reporters today who wrote a story saying a veteran said something about me, I was going to ask them, ‘Who was the veteran?’… I try to be careful with what I say because I know you guys are still going to write it up how you want to write it up, I was a journalism major. That’s your job.”
Whether Brown is furious with the organization, or everything is as copacetic as he suggests remains to be seen. But, there’s a chance that Brown has played his last snap in an Eagles uniform, at least for this season.
A.J. Brown’s availability for Playoff Game in Doubt
There is little questioning A.J. Brown’s value to the Eagles’ offense, but Philadelphia might have to take on the Buccaneers in the NFC Wild Card Game without him.
That’s because Brown has not practiced since suffering a knee injury in Week 18 against the New York Giants, and has just one more opportunity to get on the practice field with his teammates on Saturday, prior to taking on Tampa Bay on Monday night.
Brown caught 106 passes for 1,456 yards and seven touchdowns this season, as one of quarterback Jalen Hurts’ favorite and most explosive targets.
Meanwhile, DeVonta Smith is dealing with the lingering effects of an ankle injury that kept him out of Philadelphia’s regular season finale.
Fortunately for the Eagles, Smith was a full-participant during both Thursday and Friday’s practices.
Look for Smith, Julio Jones, and Quez Watkins to take on expanded roles in the Eagles’ passing game against Tampa Bay, if Brown is unable to go.
