Revisiting Philadelphia Eagles trade with the Titans to land A.J. Brown

So, how is everyone feeling now. We have 11 games of evidence. Did the Philadelphia Eagles win the trade that brought over A.J. Brown from the Tennessee Titans? It took a first round pick to get him here, and it cost $100 million to ensure that he would stay, but with the team now 10-1 on the season and Number 11 being one of the main reasons why that’s the case, you won’t hear Birds fans complaining.

Titans fans aren’t complaining either. Brown’s final year in Tennessee wasn’t good, and now they have added Treylon Burks, so let’s ask the previous question another way. Did the Titans win the trade? Could Burks be better than Brown down the road? Sunday’s game could provide us with some answers, but why wait until then to search for them?

Here’s a comparison between Philadelphia Eagles’ A.J. Brown and the Tennessee Titans’ Treylon Burks

Let’s start with the measurables. Brown is six-foot-one and 226 pounds. Burks is six-foot-three and 225 pounds. Brown’s 40-yard dash time at the combine was 4.49 seconds. Burks ran it in 4.55 seconds. Burks has a 79 ⅛” wingspan. Brown’s wingspan is 78”.

No wonder Burks drew so many Brown comparisons around the draft.  Ultimately, Burks may prove to be Brown 2.0 for Tennessee, but he’s not there yet.

Brown made an immediate impact in 2019 with 100 receiving yards in his first game as a Titan. In 43 games with Tennessee, he had 185 catches for 2,995 yards and 26 touchdowns. Burks’ career in Tennessee is off to a slower start.

Burks hasn’t caught a touchdown pass yet. His first career touchdown came last week by way of him pouncing on a Derrick Henry fumble in the end zone. Through seven games, Burks has 24 catches for 334 yards. He missed four games with a foot injury, but since his return, his numbers have improved.

In his last two games, he’s caught 11 passes for 181 yards. He’s looked strong and athletic while making big catches. He’s become a fan favorite. In other words, he’s beginning to look like Brown looked at the beginning of the 2022 regular season.

Brown introduced himself to Eagles fans with ten catches for 155 yards. He’s on pace for over 1,200 receiving yards, but he’s had an up and down season. Versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, he tallied 156 yards receiving and three touchdowns, but his numbers have been down since then.

Brown has just two 100-yard games on his resume this year. He had less than 50 yards in three games and of course there are the fumbles. He’s given the ball away in two straight games. No worries long-term though. That hasn’t been a consistent issue in his career, so he figures to get that fixed. Also, even if he isn’t getting the ball thrown his way, his presence creates opportunities for other players on the Philadelphia Eagles offense as well.

The Titans added one of the best receivers from the most recent draft. He’s beginning to play well, so it’s obvious why they’d think they won the trade. Hopefully, both have long, productive careers. We’ll see how both perform in Week 13 on Sunday.

In the meantime, Eagles fans are well aware of two things. One, ten wins are better than seven wins, and second, thanks to the New Orleans Saints, Philly in many ways recouped the first-round draft choice that they lost in the trade with Tennessee (and that pick figures to land in the top ten).