Eagles QB Jalen Hurts says relationship with A.J. Brown is "really good" ahead of expected trade

Less than a week away from the expected A.J. Brown trade, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts said his relationship with the All-Pro wide receiver is "really good." 

"Nothing has changed since we last spoke at the end of the season," Hurts said Wednesday at OTAs at the Jefferson Health Training Complex in South Philly. "We're really good. And I saw how beautiful the pictures came out at his wedding. I'm very happy for him and his wife and his family. It's a beautiful thing to step into covenant, so I was very excited and congratulatory toward that." 

Hurts and the rest of Philadelphia's offense are entering a pivotal 2026 season after last season's playoff exit led to changes on the offensive coaching staff. 

The Eagles moved on from Kevin Patullo and hired Green Bay Packers quarterbacks coach Sean Mannion as offensive coordinator to bring fresh ideas to an offense that fizzled out in the 2025 season. 

But for Hurts, he'll likely have to do that without Brown, who has been his top receiver over the last four seasons in Philadelphia. Brown was absent at OTAs on Wednesday, which are voluntary. 

"For us, we're focused on learning the offense," Hurts said. "It really doesn't change in terms of our approach to improve. There's an if, obviously, been a lingering thing, but nothing can replace all the greatness that we achieved together."  

Since the Eagles acquired Brown from the Tennessee Titans, they've had a ton of success. They won the franchise's second Super Bowl in the 2024 season, fell short of winning another and went to the playoffs in every season. 

Brown set franchise records and earned personal accolades like All-Pro and Pro Bowl nods. 

But even with all that success, Brown became frustrated with his role on the offense in 2025, which led to rumors and reports of him being traded out of Philadelphia. 

Eagles running back Saquon Barkley said Wednesday the team hasn't addressed the potential trade and spoke highly of Brown. 

"It's football," Barkley said. "It's the National Football League. It's going to be a hard time for me to say anything bad about A.J. Brown. I'm a big fan of A.J. Brown, one of my really good friends, one of my favorite teammates I've ever been around, just respect him as a man. But this is the business. It's the NFL. If I'm not here, Jalen's not here; if whoever is not here, the show goes on, and that's just how the NFL operates."

Brown has long been rumored to be traded to the New England Patriots this offseason, but replacing his production won't be an easy task for Philadelphia. 

Luckily, the Birds have another No. 1 wide receiver in DeVonta Smith, who is set up for a career season in 2026. 

Ahead of Brown's expected exit, Philadelphia has retooled its receiving room by drafting Makai Lemon in the first round, trading for Dontayvion Wicks and signing veterans Hollywood Brown and Elijah Moore in free agency. 

At tight end, the Eagles also brought back Dallas Goedert, added Eli Stowers in the draft and signed veteran Johnny Mundt. 

Hurts said the offense working as one collective unit in Mannion's system will be key in the 2026 season. 

"Ultimately, I think the thing is just learning what coach Sean is installing and the direction we're going in with him and that's a collective thing that we all need to be bought into," Hurts said. "So we all need to build that shared belief in going out there and learning our jobs, learning how we're going to do it and then kind of building our identity as we go forward."