“You can describe me like a 70 Chevelle, old school. I’m one of the guys that, I’m a big guy, fast guy, explosive, you know, hard to bring down”
A.J. Brown doesn’t mind telling you exactly what he thinks of himself, and Philadelphia fans are going to love it. The 2022 Eagles are going to have an Alpha in the wide receiver room this year!
Not another first-round pick that will be projected to do well. An actual NFL talent who has already proven he can make plays in the league. A true bonafide number one receiver.
AJ Brown might be the best wideout in Philadelphia since Terrell Owens. One big difference is that this time the Brotherly love between receiver and quarterback is sincere!
Brown spoke about playing with Hurts
“It’s real special. We have messed around on the field on our own time, but this time it’s gonna be for real”
His Athleticism:
AJ uses his 226 lb, 6 foot one frame not only to body people to make himself open but also to bully defenders to get extra yards.
When asked how much he loves “throwing dudes” while on the field
“It’s the beauty of it, its the beauty of it, my mindset when I get the ball don’t let nobody tackle me. It’s all about that YAC”
Power isn’t the only attribute he exploits DBs with, he also uses his hands and feet. AJ has a very quick-footed release while simultaneously hand-checking to create more separation. He also is blessed with great balance which is very visible on tape while he is running his routes.
His skill set seems to be a match made in Heaven with Philly’s RPO-heavy offense. The Eagles QB, Jalen Hurts, will also benefit from having Brown on three-step drop passes via the quick reads and timing routes. AJ can get open quickly, and that skill set will be utilized often.
How the offense will improve:
AJ joined the team and started participating in voluntary practices immediately.
“I want them to know I’m a hard worker, I’m a team guy, not a me guy”
His legendary work ethic is contagious, and he will prove to be a great example to his teammates. He attacks the offseason with a relentless hunger.
“The preparation before the season pushing myself past exhaustion, each offseason, training like a pro, thinking like a pro, just being a student”
Brown is physical. He gets a quick release and will be open over the middle more often than not. With Brown occupying one side of the offense and DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert on the other, defenses will be forced to pick their poison.
RPOs, timing routes, and play action, all should improve with the threat of AJ. The Eagles will be able to attack defenses on every level.
How will the Eagles and DeVonta benefit:
During the 2021 season, Smith amassed an above-average target rate but below-average yards per route.
In contrast, AJ lead the league in targets while facing press coverage and had the most yards per route against that same coverage.
Brown will be expected to do more of that while playing up on the line of scrimmage. Smith should be able to put up bigger numbers while facing a lot more off-coverage defenses and allowing him to get a cleaner release and create more separation.
DeVonta was also a lot more successful in creating explosive plays when he was able to get free off the line of scrimmage. Smitty lined up out wide on 877 of his 1003 snaps last season. He played from the slot in 97 of them. The addition of Brown should allow for a lot more of DeVonta from the slot alignment. Having Smith move around will benefit him and the offense.
Smith struggled some against press coverage, AJ does not. The matchups that Smith will face playing alongside Brown should allow for a lot more success in the Eagle’s overall passing game.
Brotherly Love:
Jalen and AJ appear to be very excited to play with one another.
The offensive skill position players have already been practicing together. All of them have stated they are bonding, learning, and having a lot of fun while doing so. The sky is the limit for the offense this upcoming season.
As always, thank you for reading!
Follow me at @PHLEagleNews
David
6/26/22