AJ Brown Goes Full Receiver, Posts Some Cryptic Lyrics On Twitter After The Eagles Move To 4-0
Kevin Sabitus. Getty Images.It's been obvious that AJ Brown is frustrated. I mean how could he not be? The Eagles passing game was borderline non-existent through the first 2 games of the season. He had 1 reception on 1 target for 8 yards in the season opener vs Dallas, and only hauled in 5 catches for 27 yards against Kansas City. AJ Brown is a superstar, and he has as many receptions in the season so far as a guy like Puka Nacua has in a game.
But up until this very moment, AJ Brown has done a pretty great job of handling himself. Obviously he's frustrated with the lack of opportunity he has to impact the games. But he hasn't caused any distractions. He hasn't been moody towards the media. He hasn't thrown any tantrums on the sideline. He's just kept his head down, keeps going about his business, and he had a monster 2nd half against the Rams last week.
Then we get to week 4 against the Bucs. The first half was great. The ball was moving, the play designs were creative, they were getting every look they wanted to get against that defense. Even if AJ Brown wasn't involved much, the offense looked like they could do whatever they wanted. But then the 2nd half started, and for some reason the Eagles offense reverted right back to where they were in the first 2 weeks of the season. A bunch of 3 & outs. Play designs that didn't create an ounce of separation for the receivers. Luckily they played well enough in the 1st half to hold onto the win, but it was ugly down the stretch.
4-0 is 4-0. But I guess AJ Brown wasn't too thrilled with the win after being the 6th best receiver on the Eagles' roster with just 2 catches for 7 yards.
Now here's the thing--you never know with receivers. This could ultimately mean absolutely nothing at all. Sometimes receivers just get a little too moody, and they need to be a little passive aggressive on social media to let off some steam. It's not what you'd want to see out of your star receiver after your team just moved to 4-0 after a good win against a good Bucs team. But it just comes with the territory of having a star receiver.
But then there's also a chance that AJ Brown is reaching his breaking point. Last week after the win against the Rams, he said this about the offense.
DeVonta Smith only had 2 catches off of 2 targets today. AJ Brown only had 2 catches today. Granted, he had 9 targets but most of those were uncatchable balls. The Eagles have 2 of the best receivers in football, and the ball only touched their hands a combined 4 times during this game. He made it pretty damn clear and obvious in his post-game presser last week that he wants the offense to be more aggressive. Instead, the Eagles had like 20 total yards in the 2nd half today without a single completion.
AJ Brown isn't a guy who talks too much to the media every week. So when he actually gives a pretty direct answer to a question, it clearly means something to him. And the message he received today was that it doesn't matter to Kevin Patullo or Nick Sirianni. And that makes sense. The Eagles are 4-0. They are winning football games. They are taking care of the ball, and they realize they don't need to be an offensive juggernaut to win games right now. The defense will get turnovers, and all the offense needs to do is be efficient. They prioritize efficiency over explosiveness right now.
So AJ Brown is going to keep being frustrated with the way the offense is running. And the Eagles coaching staff is going to keep not giving a shit as long as the team is winning. Which sets up for the perfect shit storm of drama every week when AJ Brown has a bunch of single digit numbers in his stat line. The only hope is that a couple games against the Giants coming up on the schedule here can turn things around. He needs a few big nights.