Despite being 8-2 and fresh off a Super Bowl win, there continues to be a lot of negativity surrounding the Philadelphia Eagles.
At the forefront of this negativity has been wideout A.J. Brown, the Eagles’ talented yet disgruntled receiver who hasn’t been shy about voicing his frustration with his and the offense’s underwhelming production through 10 games.
Brown threw more gas on the fire on Thursday when asked about speculation that he isn’t the same player that he once was.
“I guess Saquon ain’t the same player either, then,” Brown said. “I don’t care about that.”
Obviously, Brown putting the spotlight on Barkley’s struggles this season is not a good look. It’s yet another example of the missteps Brown has taken this season, both on and off the field.
But while mentioning another teammate may not have been the best approach, Brown has a point in that you’d be hard-pressed to find any Eagles offensive player who is performing at the level they did a year ago. If Barkley is getting a “pass” for his underwhelming numbers, why isn’t Brown?
The answer to that question might be rooted in the fact that — unlike Barkley and quarterback Jalen Hurts — Brown is airing his grievances in a multitude of ways that appear to be detrimental to the Eagles.
On the field, Brown has often appeared either frustrated, moody, dejected, disinterested, or a combination of all four. It’s worth questioning if his negative body language has contributed to his and the Eagles’ offensive struggles this season.
Off the field, Brown has made headlines for the wrong reasons. His recent comments on a livestream reportedly led to him having a 10-minute conversation with Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie.
Brown may the figurehead of the current lack of brotherly love in Philadelphia, but he isn’t alone. On Wednesday, for example, Hurts had to field questions stemming from a report that coaches and teammates have grown frustrated with him.
“I guess I get a lot of attention when things are going well and when things are not going so well,” Hurts said. “I never run away from holding myself accountable, and I think that’s exactly what I’ve taken the approach of doing. I take great pride in what we do on offense. I take great pride in how we go out there and play as a team and what our flow is. I think we’ve got work to do, and that obviously starts with me. That’s always my approach. That’s always me looking internally first in everything that we do and then in due time rising above.”
While they may be the most dysfunctional Super Bowl caliber team since the 1995 Cowboys, the Eagles still have a lot of football ahead of them. And despite their dysfunction, Philadelphia is currently sitting at 8-2 and are running away with the NFC East title.
When it comes to Brown, his frustration does appear to be coming from a good place. He wants to have a larger role in the offense in an effort to help the unit realize its full potential. His next change to do that will be this Sunday in Dallas against the arch rival Cowboys.
