Why Eagles, Patriots may still be negotiating A.J. Brown trade

When Ian Rapoport of NFL Network recently said that the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England Patriots were "not particularly close" to finalizing an expected trade that would send wide receiver A.J. Brown from the Eagles to the Patriots, some understandably wondered if the Patriots could pull out of the deal. 

However, multiple reports have since revealed that the Patriots are the only "viable destination" for Brown. Per Aaliyan Mohammed of NESN, insider Mike Giardi said on the latest edition of CLNS Media's "All-32 NFL Podcast" that he still feels "very strongly that" Brown is going to end up with the Patriots. For an article published on Friday, Chad Graff of The Athletic explained why Patriots fans shouldn't necessarily panic if Brown isn't a New England player by the midway point of next week. 

Do Patriots not want to pay a "steep price" for A.J. Brown?

"A 2027 first-round pick would be a steep price for the Patriots and the kind of return that would probably be viewed publicly as a win for the Eagles," Graff wrote about the trade. "The draft class next year is expected to be loaded, and the Patriots could use their first-round pick next year as one of the final pieces in this sped-up rebuild under [head coach Mike Vrabel]."

It's no secret that the Eagles and Brown have known for some time that they are going to break up. On Thursday night, NFL insider Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk noted that "no team in its right mind will trade for Brown if Brown doesn’t particularly want to play for that team." 

Numerous reports have said that Brown wants to reunite with Vrabel, the receiver's head coach when the two were with the Tennessee Titans from 2019 through the 2021 season.

Will Eagles ultimately accept this compromise from Patriots?

"A 2028 first-round pick seems like a better compromise," Graff continued. "That way, the Eagles would still get the pick they covet, and the Pats could kick the compensation down the road, buying more time to go all in during (quarterback) Drake Maye’s cost-controlled rookie contract. The best-case scenario for the Patriots would likely be some sort of conditional draft pick headed to the Eagles. That scenario could see something like a second-round pick headed to Philadelphia that turns into a first-round pick if Brown reaches, say, 800 receiving yards. That would give the Pats protection in case of an injury to Brown."

Florio and other in-the-know individuals have mentioned that no other would-be buyer is swooping in to steal Brown from the Patriots unless New England has second thoughts about acquiring the 28-year-old. Meanwhile, the Patriots are still without a proven No. 1 receiver on their roster after they spent none of their nine draft picks on a player at the position earlier this spring. 

Neither the Eagles nor the Patriots have to cave in trade talks on June 1 just because that is when Philadelphia will face fewer salary-cap penalties related to trading Brown. Nevertheless, all signs continue to point to Brown joining the Patriots sooner rather than later.