This offseason, the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles had a prolonged negotiation for wide receiver A.J. Brown. That ended in a trade, but because it was drawn out publicly over months, there was time for some feelings to get hurt.
Brown has made it clear that he’s thrilled to be with the Patriots, and New England is more than happy to have a new star. On the other side of the coin, though, the Eagles do have to move on, with head coach Nick Sirianni trying to take the high road when asked about Brown.
“I would say that it was a lot of good years,” Sirianni said. “Done a lot of good things with A.J. here. Two times in the Super Bowl. I think he was All-Pro multiple times. Pro Bowl multiple times. I would say it was a good run.”
However, it was the closing line of that press conference that caused the stir. Sirianni wouldn’t call out Brown by name, but did seem to imply they were looking for a new attitude from their players.
“To get to where we want to go, we need each other and not in this sport, can we do it alone,” Sirianni said. “If you want to do it alone, you got to pick another sport.”
Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots Fans React to Nick Sirianni
GettyNew England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown playing with the Philadelphia Eagles
Ending his press conference on that note was bound to raise some eyebrows. So, it’s no surprise that fans of both the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots had some pretty big reactions, assuming he was talking about A.J. Brown.
“Wonder who he was he talking about,” one fan wrote, again seeming to reference Brown. Another fan would add to that more directly, writing, “And that’s how you bury the AJ Clown saga.”
It wasn’t just Eagles fans who reacted to the quote from Sirianni, though. There were plenty of fans, both of the Patriots and anyone just trying to troll Philadelphia, who wanted to get in on these quotes.
“AJ lives rent free in his head. The Eagles are cooked already,” wrote a fan. Another fan, going by Scott Zolak’s Burner, added to that. They wrote, “Eagles fans will be calling for this morons job by week 5.”
Regardless of what side of the coin fans are on in the A.J. Brown saga, it’s clear that the way he exited, making it clear he wanted out of Philadelphia, left a sour taste in some fans’ mouths. It’s also obvious that Patriots fans are excited for their new star wide receiver.
Patriots HC Mike Vrabel Opened Up About A.J. Brown’s First Week in New England
GettyNew England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown
It’s only been one week for A.J. Brown with the New England Patriots, and minicamp is just now underway. It’s not much time for Brown to have gotten his feet under him, but head coach Mike Vrabel thinks it’s been good so far.
“I think good. I think the weekend probably served him well to be able to take a deep breath and get some rest,” Vrabel said. “I am sure it has been a whirlwind for him, but he is excited about learning the system and eventually moving around and doing different things. I think it has been great just having him around and continuing to integrate himself into our football team.”
One major benefit for Brown is that he has plenty of familiarity with Vrabel. After all, when Brown broke into the NFL with the Tennessee Titans, Vrabel was his head coach. In fact, that connection was a major reason why he wanted to leave Philadelphia and join the Patriots.
Fans React to Eagles Nick Sirianni Seemingly Calling out Patriots WR A.J. Brown