‘Emotions run hot’: Eagles’ A.J. Brown explains his animated conversation with Jalen Hurts

On Thursday afternoon following the Eagles’ first walk-through of the week, wide receiver DeVonta Smith shared lunch and a side of scripture with his teammate A.J. Brown in the NovaCare Complex cafeteria.

“Do not judge others and you will not be judged,” Smith read from the Gospel of Matthew in the locker room, repeating the verse he shared with Brown. “But you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you are judged.”

The act of discussing scripture isn’t anything new for the receiving duo, according to Smith. They bond through their faith and often talk about motivational messages to help kick-start their days of work in the Eagles facility.

But after Brown’s nationally televised, self-described “sideline discussion” with quarterback Jalen Hurts before the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Vikings last Thursday night, Smith sought out a particular passage that resonated with Brown’s feeling of being unfairly judged. In his first comments since the Eagles’ 34-28 win, Brown pushed back on the perception that he was arguing with Hurts on his lack of targets at that point in the game.

Before the animated conversation, Brown had three catches for 17 yards. He finished the night with four receptions for 29 yards, his second-lowest total in an Eagles uniform.

“It was a discussion,” Brown said. “This is a game that we both love and I want everybody to understand that sometimes the emotions run hot. And that’s kind of what happened, too. That doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. That doesn’t mean I’m beefing with Jalen.

“Also, I want y’all to know, no, it was not about targets. I’m sure that everybody thought that because he threw me the ball three plays in a row afterwards. But no, I was not over there discussing targets or whatever the case might be. It was something that happened earlier and we were having a discussion about it. So I know everybody took that out of context, but it’s not a big deal.”

While coach Nick Sirianni rated the intensity of the conversation a 2 out of 10, Brown said it was “half of one,” exacerbated by his use of his hands and by Sirianni interjecting shortly before the broadcast cut back to the game. Brown’s tinted visor, he joked, probably did him a favor in hiding some of his animation.

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The discussion on the sideline is indicative of Brown’s willingness to have uncomfortable conversations with Hurts, whom he has had a close relationship with since he was in high school. No matter the circumstance, Brown said he doesn’t have an issue holding his teammates accountable, nor does he have an issue with being held accountable by his teammates.

“Regardless of if the cameras catch us talking about it, or whatever the case may be, I don’t mind,” Brown said. “I’ll be the guy to have uncomfortable conversations, because we know that we always talk about the standard and we’re not playing up to that standard. It doesn’t matter if we are at home or on TV, or wherever the case may be, we need to talk about, we need to discuss it, because we’re not living up to what we want.

“I don’t mind. I don’t mind that at all. It’s a reason why I got a C on my chest.”

But Brown wasn’t the only one who was neglected in the passing game against the Vikings. Aside from Smith’s explosive receptions for 54 and 63 yards, the latter of which was for a touchdown, the Eagles offense collected just 76 yards on 16 catches. Meanwhile, running back D’Andre Swift thrived on the ground, picking up a career-high 175 rushing yards.

Brown acknowledged that opposing defenses have done a good job of keeping the Eagles offense in front of them to limit chunk plays. Meanwhile, the Eagles are taking what they can get by “dipping and dunking” on shorter gains. The going won’t get any easier when they visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who boast the league’s eighth-ranked scoring defense led by coach Todd Bowles, on Monday Night Football.

“It’s an everyday battle and we’re working on it,” Brown said. “The good thing about everything is that we’re 2-0. And we can learn from everything. It would look a lot different if we were 0-2. So that’s the positive. And we’re still moving forward, we’re still growing, like Jalen said. We’re a work in progress and that’s OK.”

While the passing game navigates an inconsistent start to the season, Brown is embracing the close bonds he has with his teammates that allow him to feel comfortable getting uncomfortable.

The public may have its judgments and opinions, but Brown isn’t getting bogged down by the speculation.

“Everybody’s going to have an opinion about something they don’t really know about something,” Brown said. “But that’s OK. It’s all opinion.

“But we’re fine. I want guys to know that. We’re excited because we’ve got another opportunity in Tampa to come out and play our ball.”