August 19, 2026
Eric Canha/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Former Eagle A.J. Brown says he wants to keep his focus on the Patriots, and on moving forward.
The Eagles and Patriots held their first joint practice on Wednesday, with everyone in Foxboro knowing that A.J. Brown was going to be the focal point, as scores of fans elsewhere kept tabs on any sort of updates on social media.
The key players – mainly Brown and his former Eagles teammates Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith – knew, too, that questions would come from the press afterward about the star receiver's polarizing exit from Philly via trade.
But they all kept their eyes forward, and their answers were either short or highly diplomatic.
A.J. Brown is a New England Patriot now. It's what it is.
"Think it was a great day out here," Hurts said at the Eagles' makeshift press conference podium to the first question about seeing Brown for the first time since the trade. "I mean, I know he's going out there and competing. Got a lot of love for him, always have. It seems like it was a competitive practice."
"It's not about no closure or anything, man," Brown said at the Patriots' end (via NBC Sports Philadelphia). "It's love. I won a Super Bowl ring with them, and it'll always be love, no matter how anyone feels. I love Philly, and I will always love Philly. But I'm here now, and that's where my feet are, and that's what I'm focused on."
It's what it is.
MORE: It's OK to admit that Jalen Hurts is a good quarterback
As practice began Wednesday morning and the players started funneling out onto the New England practice fields, Brown met with Eagles security chief Dom DiSandro as he walked out from the locker room, but then jogged straight by most of his former Philadelphia teammates with just an acknowledgment or two, as captured by our own Jimmy Kempski.
A.J. Brown jogs past former Eagles teammates on the way out to practice. pic.twitter.com/Ibb4p9Joz7
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) August 19, 2026
Brown dropped a deep pass in the early 1-on-1 drills against Eagles cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, but then kept as an active pass-catching target for New England, per Kempski's word on the scene.
Nice coverage here from Riq Woolen against Romeo Doubs #Eagles pic.twitter.com/e4pXLzudyZ
— EJ Smith (@EJSmith94) August 19, 2026
A.J. Brown active and productive so far. Crosser beat Riq, quick slant beat Q, fade beat Riq. Fade was in front of the Eagles’ sideline. A.J. spun the ball after that one.
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) August 19, 2026
Hurts said after practice that he hadn't caught up with Brown. Smith, who finally returned to the field from a hamstring injury, said a blunt "Nah" to the same question, and that he hadn't seen any of Brown's reps on the Patriots' offense.
"I didn't see none of it," Smith, the Eagles' now outright No. 1 receiver, said. "I was on the offensive field."
Brown said he would talk to Hurts this week "if our paths run across," but it didn't come off like he'd be going out of his way to do so.
Brown didn't seem much interested at all in looking back on what led to his departure from Philly either, which culminated with some brutal drops in the Wild Card loss to the 49ers back in January that plainly put the writing on the wall – he wasn't going to be an Eagle anymore.
"Honestly, guys, none of that stuff even matters," Brown said, trying to keep his composure as the questions about his Eagles exit kept coming his way. "I think you all should wanna report something positive. You know asking the question is gonna turn negative, so let's not get into that, and let's keep everything positive. It's love my way, and just move forward. That's all."
"I love you, and I'm not looking in the past," Brown added about his final message to Eagles fans and the way that 49ers playoff game went. "It's a game. That game, no, I didn't play my best. But I'm not going backwards. It doesn't exist, and that's the last question I'm gonna answer about the past."
It's what it is. Still, it does linger.
"Philly, man... y'all tough" 😂
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) August 19, 2026
A.J. Brown fielded plenty of questions about his breakup with the Eagles following a joint practice in New England on Wednesday. pic.twitter.com/jFAmcnHDPe
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