A.J. Brown is a wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles, and was drafted in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft with the 51st overall pick. Born in Starkville, Mississippi, Brown played baseball and football at Starkville High School. He caught 83 passes for 1,371 yards and 13 touchdowns during his senior season and led his team to a 6A State Championship. Brown was named First-Team All-State by USA Today, and was regarded as a top recruit in both baseball and football. He played in both the Under Armour All-America football and baseball games. He would enroll at Ole Miss as a four-star receiver in their 2016 recruiting class. In three seasons at Ole Miss, Brown caught 189 passes for 2,984 yards and 19 touchdowns. He received first-team All-SEC honors in 2017 and 2018, and declared for the NFL Draft after his junior season, where he was selected by the Tennessee Titans. The two-sport athlete was also drafted in the 19th round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres.
Brown is an elite athlete who ran a 4.49 40 time at the combine at 6-0 and 226-pounds, which was good for a 91st-percentile Speed Score of 109.7. In his rookie year, Brown posted a receiving line of 52-1,051-8 on 84 targets while averaging a ridiculous 20.2 Yards Per Reception. Brown missed two games in 2020 due to a bone bruise, but that didn’t stop him from posting his second-straight 1,000-yard season. He finished with 70-1075-11 and was the WR6 in fantasy points per game (17.7). In the offseason, Brown underwent surgeries on both knees to correct sprains which affected him throughout the 2020 season.
Brown was pacing for career highs in targets, receptions and receiving yards during the 2021 season, and also earned a 27.0-percent target share. He played only 13 games due to chest and hamstring injuries, but finished with 63-869-5 on 105 targets, also posting a career high in air yards (1,150). The Titans WR1 had only six drops on the season, and was No. 73 with 319 routes run. Despite playing most snaps on the outside, Brown also saw limited action in the slot (111 snaps).
Brown was traded to the Eagles on Draft Day in 2022 for the No. 18 and No. 101 picks in the Draft. His fourth NFL season and his first in Philadelphia was a smashing success. He posted new career highs in air yards, receptions, and receiving yards. Since 2000, he is one of just 35 wide receivers to compile 2,800-plus receiving yards in their first three seasons in the NFL. His 24 receiving touchdowns is tied for the sixth most among players over the same span.
The Eagles and Brown got off to a hot start in 2023 following their Super Bowl appearance the previous season. The 26-year-old was the WR2 in fantasy points per game through the first nine games of the season (pre-bye). The Eagles' season unraveled over the second half of the season, and Brown's production waned. He finished the season as the WR8 in PPG.
