In one of the more unsurprising moves of the 2026 NFL Offseason, the Philadelphia Eagles and wide receiver A.J. Brown officially parted ways. Philly sent Brown to the New England Patriots, primarily for a first-round pick in the 2028 NFL Draft.
It's clear that the Eagles were not going to get a first-round pick in the loaded 2027 NFL Draft, but General Manager Howie Roseman still got a first-round pick back in the deal. After four rather strong, successful years, which included a Super Bowl title, Brown now heads to the Patriots and reunites with a former head coach in Mike Vrabel.
The Eagles have officially closed this book and are moving on, seemingly with a room that will now feature DeVonta Smith and rookie Makai Lemon. Smith now figures to be the de facto No. 1 target. Recently, an all-time Eagles legend spoke out about the Brown trade and really didn't mince words, either.
Philadelphia Eagles legend Brian Dawkins doesn't mince words about the A.J. Brown trade
Brian Dawkins made his stance crystal clear:
Brian Dawkins reacted to the Eagles trading A.J. Brown from his Driving Impact Celebrity Golf Tournament at Penn Oaks Golf Club:
— SPORTSRADIO 94WIP (@SportsRadioWIP) June 2, 2026
"It's who walks through the door, is who I am going to war with. Period. For anybody that's not walking through the door anymore, go do your thing."… pic.twitter.com/66TTnBFGPT
It's clear that Dawkins is of the 'ride or die' mindset - Brown is no longer on the Eagles, so it's time to move on and quit dwelling on it. It also seems clear that Brown didn't really have much of a desire to remain with the franchise, so at this point, he's irrelevant.
One of the best players in Eagles history, Dawkins made seven Pro Bowls with the franchise and was named to four All-Pro teams. An Eagles legend through and through, Dawkins knows just how much being on the team means to a player, so Brown's apparent dissatisfaction with being an Eagle speaks volumes.
And, despite this franchise always being in some sort of drama, the winning has stuck. This team has posted double-digit wins for four consecutive years and has been in the playoffs each year since 2021. This operation really began to take off when Brown first arrived back in 2022, so it'll be interesting to see if the offense can still find that spark without Brown.
This also paints someone like Smith in a very good light, as he's been with the team his entire career, and I am not sure there is a single instance of him complaining or expressing any unhappiness. Teams across the league should honestly be more willing to trade players who are simply not happy - an NFL locker room is likely one of the most sacred environments in all of sports, and we can only begin to imagine how iffy it might feel in that room knowing a high-profile player doesn't want to be there anymore.
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And it seems like Dawkins echoes this. It's time to move on.
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