Why Patriots' didn't share Rams' concerns about trading for A.J. Brown

Months before the New England Patriots officially acquired wide receiver A.J. Brown from the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead confirmed that he "chatted" with Eagles general manager Howie Roseman about a possible trade for Brown. 

The Rams likely would have parted ways with veteran receiver Davante Adams had they acquired Brown. However, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated noted on Monday that any potential deal involving the Rams and Eagles "crumbled when the Rams couldn’t work out a corresponding trade of Adams to another team, and with some concerns L.A. had over Brown’s knee." 

Breer also explained why the Patriots felt comfortable with sending the Eagles a 2028 first-round draft pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick for Brown. 

Patriots got a good look at A.J. Brown's knee before trade with Eagles

"Roseman and [Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf] didn’t meet face-to-face at the owners meetings in Arizona, but right around then, they picked talks back up," Breer wrote. "Roseman reiterated he’d need a first in return. Wolf was still unwilling to move his 2027 first-round pick, but they started to discuss making a 2028 first-rounder the focus of a deal, just as the Eagles had with the Rams. That was enough for the Eagles to give their trainers permission to talk to the Patriots trainers about Brown’s injury history, which happened right around April 1. They passed along his scans — which were key, given that his degenerative knee condition, which he has effectively managed throughout his career, was what led to the Titans trading him in the first place back in 2022."

Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel was Brown's head coach with the Titans from 2019 through the 2021 season, and it's no secret that Vrabel didn't want the Titans to trade Brown in 2022. That said, Brown's knee isn't all that could have scared would-be buyers off regarding a possible trade for his services. 

Specifically, he routinely vented his frustrations over his role in the Philadelphia offense publicly over the past couple of seasons. Thus, some may feel that it's a matter of when and not if he will cause headaches for the Patriots if he is unhappy with the number of targets he sees on any given Sunday. 

Why Patriots aren't nervous about A.J. Brown drama

"The Patriots never lost interest," Breer added, "with a dozen people who were with Vrabel in Tennessee vouching for Brown, and character crosschecks Pats people were doing with folks who’d been with Brown in Philly checked out, too. What stood out about Brown, even with all the drama he was tied to, was how he was described as a competitor, an alpha and a football junkie."

The fact that Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata sounded downright relieved last week that the Brown-related saga was over may say plenty about how some Philadelphia players viewed the 28-year-old this spring. What's done is done, and Vrabel will now be tasked with keeping Brown happy for the foreseeable future.