5 Teams That Should Pursue A.J. Brown Trade After Eagles' Playoff Loss

There will be no repeat championship for the Eagles—Philly's season is over after being upset by the sixth-seeded San Francisco 49ers in the Wild Card Round. And as is so often the case when an NFL team comes up short in the playoffs, talk will turn immediately to recriminations and what needs to change.

Wide receiver A.J. Brown is already at the center of both.

It's rather the status quo with the enigmatic seventh-year veteran. That Brown is productive is undeniable—he's surpassed 1,000 receiving yards six times (including 2025) and averaged eight touchdowns a season. But there's a flip side to that, whether it's the nebulous social media posts or far less nebulous dust-ups with his head coach during a playoff loss.

Speculation regarding Brown's future in Philly has raged for a while now. Sunday's loss will only add fuel to that fire, even if the most likely place Brown plays in 2026 is right where he's at, given his contract and the first-round pick he'd likely cost in a trade, given the massive dead cap hit a Super Bowl contender in Philadelphia would have to absorb.

But there are a handful of teams for whom Brown's skills could be worth that pick. And his salary. And the occasional headline that has nothing to do with the stats he posts.

New England Patriots

AP Photo

One might think that the prior relationship between A.J. Brown and New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel could be a sticking point in a reunion. After all, it was Vrabel's Titans who sent Brown to Philly back in 2022.

But on a podcast appearance last August, Vrabel made it clear that it wasn't his idea to trade the mercurial wideout.

"Nobody wanted to have (Brown) walk out of (Tennessee)," Vrabel said. "It didn't work out. It's disappointing. The thing that I am most proud of is the relationship with him and the players that I've coached."

Assuming Brown has no hard feelings either, that's one box checked.

The rest essentially check themselves.

The Patriots have shown this season they are legitimate contenders. There's a window open—one that's open a lot wider until the team has to pay quarterback Drake Maye all the money ever. And while the Pats have some skill-position talent and Stefon Diggs has turned back the clock at times this season, the team lacks a true "alpha" wide receiver.

What New England doesn't lack is cap space—with $46 million and change per Over The Cap, the team has the financial wiggle room to make a deal happen.

It would admittedly be an aggressive move. But those windows don't stay open forever.

If you want a ring, you have to take it.

Buffalo Bills

AP Photo/Adrian Kraus

Teams looking to trade for A.J. Brown are going to need one thing above all others. It's not necessarily draft capital—Brown is going to cost what he costs, and anything short of a first-rounder would likely spur the Eagles to shop him elsewhere. It's not salary cap space—teams show year after year that the cap is as much myth as reality.

It's appeal to Brown himself. The 28-year-old may not have a no-trade clause, but given his history teams aren't going to want to trade for Brown unless he wants to be there.

And why wouldn't Brown want to play with Josh Allen in Buffalo?

The Bills advanced to the Divisional Round with a win in Jacksonville Sunday, but if the team once again comes up short of the Super Bowl, a lack of talent at wide receiver will be pointed to as one of the biggest reasons why. Many will complain that Josh Allen's prime is being wasted by the lack of a true go-to wideout.

They aren't completely wrong.

Making the money work wouldn't be easy—the Bills are already upside-down against the projected 2026 salary cap.

But moving from one Super Bowl contender to another and (with all due respect to Jalen Hurts) an upgrade at quarterback should appeal to Brown.

And again, that may be the highest hurdle to clear.

Baltimore Ravens

AP Photo/Terrance Williams

Speaking of closing doors.

Listen, it's fair to question the direction of a franchise that fires head coach John Harbaugh and interviews Kevin Stefanski as his potential replacement. But what can't be questioned is that after missing the playoffs altogether in 2025, the Baltimore Ravens are looking to make some significant changes.

And it's not hard to see why.

After winning NFL MVP honors in 2023. Lamar Jackson's career has stagnated. Counting on another massive season from running back Derrick Henry in 2026 given his age is asking to be disappointed. Where passing-game weapons are concerned, the Ravens have wide receiver Zay Flowers and what's left of tight end Mark Andrews. Outside that? It gets ugly quick.

It's a matter of what the plan is for the Ravens and whoever winds up coaching the team—and it's rather unlikely that plan is a patient addition of young talent, even if that means contending in 2026 isn't in the cards.

The far more likely plan is to return to being one of the AFC's best teams as soon as humanly possibly, and with $21 million or so in cap space and the 14th pick in 2026 at their disposal, the Ravens can make a better offer than the other teams Brown would be amenable to playing for.

Los Angeles Chargers

AP Photo/Caroline Brehman

The Los Angeles Chargers spent much of the 2025 season (and 2024, for that matter) as the contender far too few talked about as a real contender. And while the Chargers won't be traveling up the California coast to Santa Clara for Super Bowl LX, the Bolts are well-positioned to remain a force in the AFC West for some time. This is a team with an NFL-high $103.6 million in cap space and a franchise quarterback in Justin Herbert. A talented defense.

If the Bolts can fix the offensive line (and the return of Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater at tackle should do most of that fixing), this is a team well-positioned to be aggressive adding talent in 2026 to an already formidable roster.

It's also a team that could have a significant need at wide receiver.

The Chargers won't have to worry about a bag for youngster Ladd McConkey until 2027 (at least). But Keenan Allen is nearing the end of the line. Quentin Johnston started this campaign red-hot but wasn't that big a factor in the season's second half.

Brown's a sizable, proven upgrade at a position of need. And who knows? It's not that hard to imagine him clicking with Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Both of them are, uh, individuals.

San Francisco 49ers

(AP Photo/Matt Slocum

Let's start this one out with a big fat caveat. The odds that the Eagles will trade A.J. Brown inside the NFC are slim short a "Godfather" offer. The odds they would deal him to the team that just ended their season are, well, less than slim.

But among the teams on that side of the bracket, there isn't one that makes more sense than the Niners.

The job head coach Kyle Shanahan has done this year in San Francisco has been a master class, given the injuries the team has endured. But now you can add a torn Achilles tendon for tight end George Kittle to that pile. Running back Christian McCaffrey had more touches this year than any player at his position in over a decade, so the clock's ticking on his 2026 season being a mess ("The Curse of 370" spares few). Wide receiver Jauan Jennings is a free agent to-be. Brandon Aiyuk is so gone it's fair to question if he was ever there.

The 49ers have just under $40 million in cap space to play with, but as quarterback Brock Purdy's cap hit skyrockets, those resources are going to dwindle—quickly.

Brown playing with Purdy on a Shanahan offense may not be likely.

But it would be scary.