After a difficult 2025 season, A.J. Brown could be leaving the Philadelphia Eagles. A trade has been discussed by reporters, but at this point, nothing has materialized. The New England Patriots are one of the possible landing spots: they have a deep need for receivers, and Mike Vrabel worked with Brown in Tennessee.
Brian Baldinger Reveals That Mike Vrabel Never Wanted To Trade A.J. Brown
In 2022, A.J. Brown was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in a controversial move by general manager Jon Robinson, who was fired months later.
While Brown thrived with the Eagles, the Titans followed a different path, missing the playoffs that season and Vrabel leaving the team a year later.
Losing Brown was a key point in Vrabel’s tenure unraveling in Tennessee. On Friday, NFL analyst Brian Baldinger made an interesting comment during his appearance on “The Anthony Gargano Show”. According to Baldinger, Vrabel wanted to keep the receiver in Tennessee:
“When Vrabel was the head coach in Tennessee, and they drafted A.J., and then, you know, his contract was up, he was a second-round pick, he was entering his fourth year, and that’s when Howie traded for him on draft day. But Vrabel, before that, said, ‘If there’s one player on this team I’m never trading, it’s A.J. Brown. He loved that guy…the player, the man, the beast, the physicality. There was a strong relationship there.”
One of the main reasons for Brown’s trade was his contract situation.
As a second-round pick, the Titans couldn’t activate a fifth-year option for him, with 2022 representing the final year of his rookie deal. Instead of signing the receiver to a contract extension, Tennessee decided to ship him to Philadelphia for a first- and a third-round pick. The Eagles reached the Super Bowl that year.
Mike Vrabel never wanted to trade A.J. Brown.
“He loved that guy…the player, the man, the beast, the physicality.”
– @BaldyNFL pic.twitter.com/N4TNiIJO0E
— Anthony Gargano (@AnthonyLGargano) February 20, 2026
Despite a down season in 2025, Brown’s time with the Eagles has been nothing short of a success. He has 5,034 yards and 32 touchdowns in four seasons, including three division titles, two Super Bowl appearances, and a championship.
From 2022 to 2024, he was ranked top 10 in our PFSN WR Impact Metric on all three occasions, falling to No. 21 in 2025 with an 80.9 grade.
Reuniting Vrabel with Brown in New England could be the best for all parties. At times, the receiver seemed to be uninterested in his role on the Eagles’ offense in 2025. The Patriots badly need to improve their receiving group to support Drake Maye’s development, despite winning the conference.
The key point, of course, is whether the Eagles would consider dealing him. He’s under contract until the 2029 season, having signed an extension as early as 2024. This will be an interesting story to follow when the new league year starts.
