Eagles 12 most intriguing players: No. 6, how A.J. Brown keeps from getting 'exposed'
There he was, the pinnacle of stardom, having helped the Eagles win the Super Bowl. This is what he had always dreamed about.
And yet, Brown remembered feeling ... "just like, it wasn't fulfilling," as he said shortly after the Eagles' beat the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 9, while on the "Kickin' It with Dee" podcast.
"Coming into the league, we were taught we were playing for this reason, and we were playing for this trophy," Brown said. "And once we got the trophy, I thought everything would be fulfilled, like the hard work and everything.
"But no, it's the journey that matters the most. And for me, it's the most because those are the moments that you look back at your teammates, spending that time and you're going to war. You're suffering together, and you're winning together, and that's the beautiful moments in it.
"I mean ... it's cool that's it's forever in the history books. But we're gonna remember the moments more than the ring."
So Brown celebrated with his teammates in the locker room after the game, took part in the parade. Then he went back to work.
That's why Brown is No. 6 on our list of 12 most intriguing Eagles heading into the start of training camp on July 22. We're counting them down each weekday from No. 12 to No. 1. The series began July 7 and will culminate with the start of camp.
After all, the Eagles won the Super Bowl in large part because Brown was his usual unstoppable self at wide receiver. Sure, Brown's production was down somewhat from his first two seasons with the Eagles, when he had 1,496 and 1,456 yards receiving in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
Last season, Brown had 1,079 yards receiving. But he missed three games due to injury, plus the meaningless regular-season finale. In addition, the Eagles made running back Saquon Barkley the focal point of the offense as he became just the ninth player in NFL history to surpass 2,000 yards, finishing with 2,005.
Brown, of course, is an elite receiver because of his work ethic. And even with surpassing 1,000 yards receiving in five of his six seasons, Brown is nowhere near satisfied.
That hasn't changed after winning the Super Bowl.
"The process is always the same, honestly, regardless of if we won or not," Brown said. "It's always watching film, trying to rediscover yourself and to get better and find new ways to get better. You have to grow in this league. And if you don't, you'll get exposed."
That process began shortly after the Super Bowl.
"You just take notes of what you didn't do really well last year, and what may have snuck through the cracks that nobody never realized," Brown said. "But you know deep down that everybody knows what that weakness is and your strengths, and you're just trying to find new ways to pick up a few things."
Brown would not divulge what he discovered. But he has said in the past that he tries to add something new to his game every offseason, whether that's winning 50-50 balls, or showing "late hands" to fool a defender before catching the ball.
Celebrate the Eagles' Super Bowl win with our new book
There's always something for Brown to work on. And there's a good chance with teams keying in on Barkley even more this season, that Brown and fellow receivers DeVonta Smith and tight end Dallas Goedert will have a bigger role."
"Whatever it looks like, that's what it's going to look like," Barkley said. "The most important thing is winning football games. If we gotta adapt and (it's) gotta look a different way, then we're all willing to do that."
For Brown, that work began shortly after the Super Bowl. That's the feeling Brown wants to experience again.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on X @Mfranknfl. Read his coverage of the Eagles' championship season in 'Flying High,' a new hardcover coffee-table book from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Fly.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: A.J. Brown: Philadelphia Eagles most intriguing players for 2025 season
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