Don’t put too much stock in the Philadelphia Eagles trading A.J. Brown to New England, at least if you trust Jimmy Kempski of the Philly Daily Voice.
The Eagles beat writer squashed any hopes of a reunion between the three-time Pro Bowler with Mike Vrabel with a scathing column that rebuked the potential Brown deal.
The A.J. Brown Trade Speculation Was Sparked by Boston Sports Radio
Chandan Khanna/ AFP via GettyPhiladelphia Eagles’ wide receiver A.J. Brown catches the ball during Super Bowl LIX between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, February 9, 2025.
The smoke of a Brown-to-New England trade got some extra oxygen thanks to the reliably unreliable talk on Boston-area radio station WEEI. Paul Fitzgerald, a host on the station, stated in a video posted on Instagram of a tip he received from what he called a “highly reliable source.”
“I got a call earlier today saying that the Philadelphia Eagles really really really want Abdul Carter,” Fitzgerald said. “They would consider — or rather that they are planning to call [the] New England Patriots on draft day if Carter falls to four, to see if Mike Vrabel would like a reunion of A.J. Brown and possibly more draft selections and compensation to come.”
It all sounds good in theory, at least from the Patriots’ perspective. New England would get a No. 1, Super Bowl-winning wideout to pair with second-year quarterback Drake Maye. According to Fitzgerald too, Philadelphia would toss in additional draft picks, since trading into the top-5 costs a pretty penny — especially for the Eagles, who will pick 32nd and only have eight picks, including four in the fifth round.
But Kempski pointed out how little sense trading Brown would make for the Eagles, even to land another game-wrecking prospect like Carter. A pre-June 1 trade of Brown, who just signed a three-year contract extension last year, would create almost $60 million in dead cap money for the Eagles.
“We can ignore that trading A.J. Brown makes no sense for the Eagles at all from a roster perspective, and just skip right to the part where the Eagles have a little under $12 million in cap space, per the NFLPA’s daily salary cap report,” Kempski wrote. “Trading Brown would cause the Eagles’ 2025 salary cap commitments to rise by more than $12 million, putting them over the cap and making it a procedural impossibility even if such a trade made any sense.”
They could trade Brown after June 1 and save more than $1 million in cap space, but that doesn’t make much sense since the draft is this weekend and it’s not much to save — especially since Brown just posted 67 catches, 1,067 yards and eight touchdowns last season then added 12 catches for 163 yards and two TDs in the playoffs.
Adam Schefter Also Shut Down the Trade Talk, Calling It ‘Internet Speculation
Gregory Shamus/GettyDarius Slay Jr.and A.J. Brown celebrate with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after beating the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 to win Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on February 9, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
If you don’t trust the Philly Daily Voice’s opinion, maybe you will believe ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who simply wrote “Contrary to internet speculation, the Eagles are not trading A.J. Brown.”
Aside from all that, Carter is likely to be off the draft board by the time the Patriots pick at No. 4. Carter has been linked to the New York Giants with the No. 3 pick, and New York seems extremely unlikely to make any accommodations for its biggest rival — especially after it effectively gifted the Eagles running back Saquon Barkley during the 2024 off-season.
