The Philadelphia Eagles reportedly have a pair of disgruntled wide receivers in A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith early on in the 2025 season.
The Eagles have been run-heavy so far this year, with the team ranking 26th in pass attempts and eighth in rushing attempts.
And even those numbers are skewed a bit after quarterback Jalen Hurts threw a season-high 38 passes last week while the Eagles only ran the ball 11 times.
With so much running the football, that hasn't given many opportunities for Philly's two star wide receivers, which has reportedly left them unhappy with their roles.
Eagles passing game controversy explained
Brown has been public with his dissatisfaction for his role in the offense early on this season, as evidenced by a social media post he made that was difficult to interpret as anything other than a showing of frustration.
Brown posted the Bible verse Mark 6:11 after Week 4, which reads:
"If you're not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw. Don't make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way."
According to The Athletic's Dianna Russini, Brown is joined by Smith, who is also apparently frustrated with his lack of involvement in the passing game.
"A.J. Brown is frustrated … again," she wrote. "He’s made that clear, while the other high-paid receiver in Philadelphia, DeVonta Smith, has stayed quiet despite his own frustrations, multiple sources tell me. The wideouts in Philadelphia clearly want more touchdowns. They each have one."
Brown has admitted he's frustrated, but he made it clear he doesn't want to leave Philly. He also claims his message "wasn't directed at anyone in the building."
"This is home. This is my home," Brown said. "Unfortunately, I did it to myself. I won't say 'unfortunately.' I did it to myself.
"I let my frustrations boil over. I didn't speak to the media," Brown added. "I had a chance to correct my frustrations and I continued to let it boil over. And that's on me. I take full accountability on that.
"My message on Twitter wasn't directed at anyone in the building. And of course, not my quarterback, my GM, nobody. I take full accountability."
Smith backed Brown up and admitted he isn't exactly thrilled with the way things have gone, either.
“He’s a great leader,” Smith said of Brown. “Probably like most of the guys on this team, he wants what’s best for the team. Things aren’t necessarily going our way offensively and I don’t think there’s nothing wrong with him wanting better in that situation. I certainly feel the same way.”
There has been speculation that maybe the Eagles would part ways with Brown via trade, but there is just no way the Eagles will do that as they push for a second straight Super Bowl. Brown probably doesn't want that, either.
Smith managed to rebound in Week 5 with his best game of the season, although it came in a loss to the Denver Broncos. Brown was much more involved early on in that game, but that waned as the contest progressed.
We'll see if anything changes moving forward, but we don't anticipate this becoming a big enough issue to derail Philly in 2025.
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