A.J. Brown expresses confidence in Eagles coach Nick Sirianni: ‘I don’t think the team has any doubt’

Two-and-a-half weeks removed from the Eagles’ 32-9 wild-card loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, wide receiver A.J. Brown has come to terms with how the season ended, both on an individual level and for the team as a whole.

Brown, 26, injured his right knee in the regular-season finale against the New York Giants, preventing him from suiting up in the first round of the playoffs. The NFL announced Tuesday that Brown opted out of the Pro Bowl due to injury, although Brown told The Inquirer on Wednesday in his first comments since the season concluded that he’s fine physically and “in a good place” mentally. He said he wanted to give someone else the opportunity to attend the event.

» READ MORE: A.J. Brown isn’t a selfish diva. He’s trying to handle social media and mind his mental health.

Still, Brown conveyed his disappointment at not being able to contribute in the playoff game. “It was just a tough blow,” he said. “I wish I could have been there. I wish I could have played. I wish I could have been there, most importantly. I couldn’t. I couldn’t travel because of the swelling and stuff, just to give myself a chance to play the next round in a week. But it was tough.”

The wild-card exit combined with the Eagles’ 1-5 finish to the regular season paved the way to change at the coordinator positions. Defensive coordinator Sean Desai, senior defensive assistant Matt Patricia, and offensive coordinator Brian Johnson will not be back next season. The team has named Vic Fangio as its new defensive coordinator and reportedly is expected to hire Kellen Moore as the next offensive coordinator.

The Eagles offense regressed in a number of categories with Johnson calling plays within the structure of coach Nick Sirianni’s scheme compared to its performance in 2022. The offense finished the season ranked seventh in points and eighth in total yards, a drop-off from 2022 when it ranked third in each area.

The offense truly sputtered at the end of the regular season, averaging 20.5 points per game in its final six games, which marked a decrease on average from the previous 11 contests when it averaged 28.2 points. Brown called the Eagles end-of-season skid a “domino effect” in which they “ran out of time” to figure out how to right the ship.

“Unfortunately, when things don’t go as planned or something don’t go well, somebody has to be the bad guy,” Brown said of Johnson’s departure. “And I think that is kind of what happened. So somebody had to go. It’s part of this league. It’s part of the business. But I didn’t really have a reaction either way, because I’m not just attached to who’s in the OC position, because most importantly, we play football. It’s still football at the end of the day and we’ve got to go out and execute the plays. I’m not too attached on who’s in that seat.”

Brown said he has not spoken to Moore and does not know much about him, adding that he’ll do his deep-dive on Moore’s offense “soon.” Moore was the Dallas Cowboys’ offensive coordinator from 2019-22 and held the same role with the Los Angeles Chargers this season. Sirianni said in his season-ending press conference that the new offensive coordinator will be “bringing in a scheme” and “be in charge of the offense” next season.

Ultimately, Brown said he didn’t know which areas he wanted to see more growth in from the Eagles offense. He added that he just wants the team to execute, whether it’s running the ball or passing it.

While the Eagles are undergoing change at the coordinator positions, the man at the top of the coaching pecking order will remain the same. Sirianni will return as head coach for his fourth season. Brown reiterated that he hasn’t lost confidence in Sirianni to lead the team forward on the heels of a disappointing season.

“We wouldn’t be where we are if it wasn’t for him,” Brown said. “He’s a great teacher, great coach, great person. Me, I don’t have any doubt. I don’t think the team has any doubt. I think it was just Philly media, fans, or whatever, they just have the question because it didn’t end the way we all would like. But sometimes you go through adversity. Sometimes some stuff is just not meant for you at that right time and you’ve just got to weather that storm.

“You can’t let your confidence waver, either. I haven’t seen his confidence waver. My confidence has definitely not wavered.”

For now, Brown is focused on taking some time to let his body heal before jumping back into his offseason training routine. He’s also spending time away from social media, scrubbing his Instagram account and deactivating his account on X, formerly known as Twitter, shortly before the Eagles’ wild-card game. Brown said that the decision had “nothing to do with football or anything like that.”

“It was just me just trying to grow as a person, challenge myself in other ways,” Brown said. “I [was] just like, man, I’m spending too much time on social media. I could be doing something to benefit myself.”

On the field, Brown said he’s challenging himself to go to camp in even better shape than he was in last season. Brown hasn’t made any plans yet to work out with quarterback Jalen Hurts or fellow wide receiver DeVonta Smith in the offseason, but he said that “the work is definitely going to be put in.”

“I start up pretty soon,” Brown said of his offseason workout plan. “But just take it one day at a time and I will progress with how many workouts I have a day. Try to come back better than I’ve ever been.”