A.J. Brown Gets Honest About Jalen Hurts Relationship in Trending Video After Eagles-Patriots Trade

In the aftermath of being traded to the New England Patriots, A.J. Brown has opened about his relationship with Jalen Hurts and how it changed during their four seasons as teammates with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Speaking to Maria Taylor on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast (starts at 16:14 mark), Brown explained that he and Hurts are "not as close as we once were" even though there's "no bad blood" between them.

"Not as close as we once were," Brown said. "No bad blood. There is still a lot of love. I love him. We haven't been as close as we were for a couple years now, and that didn't stop anything."

The dynamic between Hurts and Brown was a key storyline throughout the 2025 season for the Eagles.

When the Eagles first acquired Brown during the 2022 NFL draft, the close personal relationship between quarterback and receiver was often cited as one of the main driving forces behind their success.

In December 2022, ESPN's Tim McManus described Hurts and Brown as "best friends" dating back to college when Hurts was trying to recruit the star wideout to Alabama.

As things were heading in the wrong direction for the Eagles last season, it certainly appeared that Hurts and Brown were on different pages for long stretches.

Brown summed up their dynamic as being "two alphas who want to be the best and demand greatness from each other and everyone around us."

Hurts consistently downplayed any issues with Brown as recently as last week. He told reporters they were "really good."

One anonymous Eagles player told Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer that part of Brown's frustration stemmed from the outside perception that he had lost a step as a result of the offensive struggles.

"He heard what others on the outside were saying about him losing a step and I think he got too preoccupied with that," the player said. "We didn't think that in here. But he saw Jalen and the pass offense as keeping him from proving that wasn't the case."

It had been expected for some time that Brown was going to be traded, with New England the anticipated landing spot. The Eagles finally made the move on Monday to spread out his dead cap over two seasons.

Even though Brown's tenure in Philadelphia ended on a down note, the totality of his four seasons marks one of the highest points in franchise history.

Brown had more than 1,000 yards in every season he played for the Eagles. They made the playoffs each year, advancing to the Super Bowl twice and winning the Lombardi Trophy for the 2024 season.