Eagles Trade WR A.J. Brown to Patriots for 2028 First-Rounder, 2027 Fifth-Rounder
Philadelphia sends the three-time Pro Bowl receiver to New England in exchange for future draft selections. The move reunites Brown with head coach Mike Vrabel and allows the Eagles to manage salary-cap space.
ESPNJ. Brown to the New England Patriots for a first-round draft pick in 2028 and the better of New England's two fifth-round selections in 2027. Brown posted a statement on Instagram the same day thanking the Eagles and their fans.
"Playing for this city has been an honor, and I'm thankful for every moment I had in midnight green," he wrote. Brown turns 29 on June 30, 2026. The trade gives Patriots quarterback Drake Maye a top receiving option alongside free-agent addition Romeo Doubs.
Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said the team examined the full set of circumstances before agreeing to the deal. "I think that when we looked at the totality of the circumstances and having the conversations we had with him, felt like where we were, where we were going, where he was, that if we could find something that kind of achieved our goals of getting a first-round pick going forward here in the near future, getting the money back to spend on other players on our team and other teams and it was a win-win situation based on where he was and how he felt, we were open to that," Roseman stated.
The Eagles had prepared for Brown's departure throughout the offseason.
They traded up in the first round of the 2026 draft to select USC receiver Makai Lemon, acquired Green Bay Packers receiver Dontayvion Wicks, and signed Hollywood Brown and Elijah Moore as free agents. By completing the trade on June 1, the Eagles can divide Brown's $40 million salary-cap charge between the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
Brown ranks fourth in the NFL in receiving yards (8,029) and touchdown catches (56) since entering the league as a second-round pick of the Tennessee Titans in 2019.
He and Cincinnati's Ja'Marr Chase are the only two players with at least 1,000 receiving yards and seven-plus touchdown catches in each of the past four seasons. Brown set the Eagles' single-season receiving-yard record with 1,496 yards in 2022 and posted the second-highest total with 1,456 yards in 2023. He is a three-time Pro Bowler.
Brown's contract, which the Patriots assume, runs through the 2029 season and carries an average annual value of $32 million, seventh-highest among NFL receivers. Brown played for Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel with the Titans from 2019 to 2021. The Patriots released leading receiver Stefon Diggs in March 2026 after losing Super Bowl LX to the Seattle Seahawks.
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