June 19, 2026
Kate Frese/For PhillyVoice
Former Eagles great A.J. Brown made some spectacular plays while with the Birds.
The A.J. Brown era in Philadelphia is over, but he had his share of moments along the way. So, you know, let's rank them.
Brown was an instant star in Philly. In his first ever game as an Eagle, he was targeted 13 times, and he had 10 catches for 155 yards, including a 54-yard deep ball at the end of the first half.
That was a moment in which Eagles fans could immediately identify, "Oh, we haven't had a receiver like this in a while."
Brown had something of a slump in the Eagles' first two playoff games against the Packers and Rams in 2024, as he had just 3 catches for 24 yards in those two games combined. But he broke out of it in the NFC Championship Game, catching 6 passes for 96 yards and a TD.
He also had four other receptions in that game of at least 15 yards.
During a blowout win over over the Cowboys late in the season, Brown caught a TD pass from Tanner McKee. That was McKee's first career TD pass, and Brown launched it into the stands, lol.
Brown returned to the Eagles' sideline to find a bunch of his teammates with their arms up, like "WHAT THE HELL, A.J.?!" Brown immediately regretted his understandable mistake and would eventually make good on it. The Eagles were able to find the fan who caught the ball, and get it back for McKee.
After the game, Brown gave the fan a signed game-worn jersey:
That was pretty cool.
For a guy who couldn't help but cause constant distractions during the Eagles' ill-fated 2025 season, Brown does deserve some credit for keeping quiet for like five months while the Eagles tried to maximize their return when trading him.
And in the end, the Eagles were able to siphon off first- and fifth-round picks from the Patriots, which in my opinion was an outstanding return on investment.
In a Week 18 game against the Giants, Brown had 4 receptions for 95 yards. He finished the season with 88 catches for 1,496 yards (17.0 YPC) and 11 TDs. His 1,496 receiving yards broke Mike Quick's record of 1,409 receiving yards, set in 1983. Brown wore a Quick jersey after the game, and the two receivers had a photo op.
— Bo Wulf (@Bo_Wulf) January 9, 2023
Brown actually owns the top two single-season receiving seasons, after he had 1,456 receiving yards in 2023.
In a 35-10 blowout of the Titans, Brown had 8 catches on 10 targets for 119 yards and 2 TDs. His highlight of the day came on a spectacular contested catch on a deep ball down the left sideline for a TD.
The Titans, then considered a tough, physical team, got bullied by the Eagles in the trenches and by Brown on the perimeter. They fired GM Jon Robinson two days later.
During a game against the Steelers that got the Eagles out to a 7-0 record, Brown had 5 catches for 113 yards and 3 TDs in the first half. He finished with 6 catches for 156 yards. On touchdown No. 3, Brown absorbed a hit after his catch that didn't faze him at all, and then he pointed at the two Steelers he beat on the play, as if to say, "I got you, and you."
That moment is probably the one that stands out to me as Brown at his dominant best.
Brown had six consecutive games in 2023 with at least 125 receiving yards, an NFL record.
Add it all up and you get 49 catches for 831 yards and 5 TDs. That is just an insane stretch. In that sixth game of that stretch, Brown made an absolutely sick catch against Washington:
I remember in the locker room after that game Jason Kelce saying the Eagles weren't really playing that well but were winning games basically because of Brown.
I suppose we'll finish off Brown's biggest moments with his two Super Bowl catches. That only seems fitting for a player who helped get the Eagles over the hump. This was his touchdown in the Eagles' Super Bowl win over the Chiefs.
On a personal note, my spot in the Superdome that day was a workstation in the normal crowd, not in the press box. I'll save the story of how I ended up there for another day. But I happened to be sitting next to a Chiefs fan, and right around the 0:02 mark of the video above I said to them, "Touchdown A.J."
They were not impressed by me having seen that play develop early. 😂
And finally, Brown's great TD catch in the Eagles' loss to the Chiefs, back when he was still besties with Jalen Hurts:
It felt after that game like Hurts and Brown could be a special pairing for a long time. And they did do some great things together thereafter. But they also probably left some meat on the bone.
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