A.J. Brown is generally not shy about letting his football grievances be known — even if he’s not always direct about it.
On Sunday, he strongly implied displeasure on social media regarding his role in the the Eagles offense following Philadelphia’s 31-25 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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On Monday, head coach Nick Sirianni was asked about Brown’s post at his Monday news conference. More specifically, he was asked if he thinks Brown still wants to play for the Eagles.
“Yeah. Obviously, A.J. is very important to this football team,” Sirianni told reporters. “I know he wants to contribute and do the things he’s capable of doing.
“He wants to contribute into these wins, and he’s had a couple games where he hasn’t been able to for different reasons. I question nothing about his desire to play great football, his desire of being a good teammate, his desire to be here.”
In case you missed it, here’s the post in question, which quotes the Bible.
@1kalwaysopen_
(@1kalwaysopen_)
“If you’re not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way.”
Brown posted it in the immediate aftermath of Philadelphia’s win, a game in which he caught two passes for seven yards. It was also a game in which the Eagles beat another 3-0 team to improve to 4-0. The Eagles have so far followed up their Super Bowl victory with one of only two 4-0 starts (Bills) in the NFL, and Brown’s not-so-subtly complaining about his role.
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Brown is off to a slow start in an offense that’s not passing the ball much with quarterback Jalen Hurts. He caught six passes for 109 yards and a touchdown in last week’s 33-26 win over the Rams. In the other three Eagles games this season, he’s gone one catch for eight yards, five for 27 and now two for seven.
Brown is a three-time Pro Bowler who’s exceeded 1,000 receiving yards in five of his six NFL seasons. He’s Philadelphia’s No. 1 receiver. He expects to get the ball.
But right now, the Eagles are operating well enough to win without him being a big part of the offense. Sirianni said that he’s talked with Brown, but declined to divulge the nature of their conversation.
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“I always talk to him,” Sirianni said. He’s somebody I talk to on a daily basis. I try to talk to all of our guys on a daily basis.
“Won’t get into any private conversations that we have. … That’s a sacred relationship between the head coach and players. We always keep that private.”
So that leaves Eagles fans to depend on Brown to communicate what’s on his mind. So far he’s choosing to do so passive aggressively on social media. We’ll see how it plays out if he continues to play a bit part Philadelphia’s offense.
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