Nick Sirianni clarifies not being able to 'guarantee' if A.J. Brown will stay with Eagles amid trade rumors

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni generated headlines when he said during the NFL Scouting Combine that he "can't guarantee" that mercurial wide receiver A.J. Brown will be with the club when the 2026 season gets underway. 

During a Wednesday appearance on "The Rich Eisen Show," Sirianni was directly asked about that comment. 

Nick Sirianni loves his relationship with A.J. Brown amid trade rumors

"It's funny how when someone asks you a question sometimes, like, 'Is he going to be back?' And it's like, 'Listen, I get it, guys. I know what you're trying to do here,'" Sirianni explained. "I can only say I love A.J. Brown. He is a great teammate. He is a great football player. ...And again, all I'll say is, I love A.J. Brown. And I love the player. I love the person. Man, I'm really grateful for the relationship I have with him."

While Brown eventually admitted he was trolling when he recently teased that he may want to join a New England Patriots team that has Mike Vrabel, Brown's former head coach with the Tennessee Titans, serving as its head coach, that moment raised even more questions about Brown's uncertain future. 

Additionally, Eagles general manager Howie Roseman suggested this past Tuesday that he would at least "listen" to offers from other teams about Brown. Considering Brown's history of being frustrated with his role in the Philadelphia offense, comments made by Roseman and Sirianni during the combine indicated a trade could be imminent. 

Nick Sirianni has had "positive" daily interactions with A.J. Brown

As for the relationship involving Sirianni and Brown, the two famously got into a heated exchange during Philadelphia's 23-19 wild-card playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 11. During Wednesday's interview, Sirianni repeated on numerous occasions that he loves Brown as both a player and a person. 

"Obviously, I love the talent that he is as a player, but I love the person," Sirianni added about Brown. "I love the teammate. And man, he's contributed so many big-time plays and big-time moments and big-time seasons. ...There's speculation from the outside. And that's why it's so important that we focus on our process and not the things we can't control, because all you can control is your daily interactions. And all my daily interactions with these guys have been positive." 

Sirianni seemed to admit that he and Brown have gone through some "ups and downs," but the coach gave no indication that he is ready to trade the 28-year-old for pennies on the dollar. In the spring of 2024, Brown signed a three-year, $96M contract extension with $84M in guaranteed money.