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The New England Patriots are looking for upgrades on the offensive side of the ball this offseason, and one name has repeatedly been mentioned as a potential target for the team: wide receiver A.J. Brown. While the three-time All-Pro selection remains under contract with the Philadelphia Eagles, he very well could become available for trade this offseason.
There has been no direct admission from anybody involved two weeks before the opening of the NFL trading window, but Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni did say earlier this week at the Scouting Combine that he “can’t guarantee” Brown being back with Philadelphia in 2026. That might just have been a generalization, but in light of the rumors swirling around it is a statement that cannot be brushed off right away either.
That in itself will continue to fuel the speculation of Brown possibly reuniting with his former head coach, Mike Vrabel, in New England. And on Wednesday, Vrabel did not exactly put out that fire either.
Asked directly about Brown during a press conference at the Combine as well as a subsequent sit-down with local media, he spoke highly about the 28-year-old.
“I think the relationship with players, and specifically A.J. has meant a lot,” Vrabel said at the podium in Indianapolis. “I’ve watched him grow. I’ve watched him mature. I’m proud of him, proud of the father that he is. I’m proud of the husband. That has nothing to do with where he plays or where he played.
“Those are the things that are important. We reach out and text each other during the good things that happen to each other. Sometimes things don’t go so well for the people that you’re close with, and you text for those as well. It’s a two-way street of support and reminders of what got us to where we are here today.”
Vrabel and Brown go back to their time in Tennessee, when the Titans selected the wideout — a longtime Patriots fan who had hoped to end up in New England — in the second round of the 2019 draft. He proved himself a No. 1 wide receiver right away, but was eventually traded to Philadelphia after three seasons.
Since then, Brown has only added to an impressive résumé that now includes a combined 568 regular season and playoff receptions as well as 62 total touchdowns. And yet, his future with the Eagles has been the subject of debate for a while now.
If push indeed comes to shove, the Patriots are one of the prime landing spots for Brown. The Vrabel connection is only one reason why New England could pursue acquiring him in a trade; Brown also would help the team add a true WR1 to the supporting cast around MVP runner-up Drake Maye.
And listening to Vrabel, that is something that cannot be done in free agency this year.
“They’re not going to be there in free agency,” he said. “You have to try to draft them, and I think that’s where a lot of them are, and develop them.”
While Vrabel specifically mentioned drafting possible top-tier wideouts, he and executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf also said that the Patriots would explore all avenues to add talent to their roster. One of those, of course, is trading (even though Wolf has yet to bring a player in that way since rising to the top of the personnel department in 2024).
“I think that we’ll look at everything that we can possibly look at to add to our roster,” said Vrabel on Wednesday. “There’s a lot of things that go into trades. There’s a lot of back and forth and talking on compensation. I’m sure there’ll be a lot of opportunities for us to talk about trades not only this week but as we prepare and get closer to the draft. Those are things when time ramps up.”
As far as the A.J. Brown speculation goes, it will likely continue until one of the parties makes a definitive commitment — whether that be the Patriots, Eagles or, to a lesser degree, the wideout himself. New England being a landing spot is up for debate, but there is no denying that Brown should appeal to the organization. Of course, at the end of the day, the compensation Vrabel mentioned will decide what is or isn’t realistic.
And until that becomes clear, the fire will keep on burning and the smoke interpreted one way or the other.