Eagles’ A.J. Brown Clarifies Comments About Meeting with Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown clarified his postgame comments about not remembering if he met with Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley in the aftermath of the team’s Week 5 loss to the Denver Broncos.

In a post on Friday, Brown said he told reporters that he didn’t “recall” the meeting “because it got painted like there was tension and [Saquon] had to step in. That’s not true.”

Speaking to reporters after the Eagles’ 34-17 loss to the New York Giants on Thursday, Brown said he didn’t “recall” any meeting with Hurts and Barkley.

Barkley said this week that the meeting between the Eagles’ star trio took place on Monday in the wake of their 21-17 loss to the Denver Broncos.

“When you hear ‘players’ meeting,’ that’s like all hell’s breaking loose,” Barkley said of the meeting. “It wasn’t that at all. But also that we’re teammates, we’re all friends, we’re just having a conversation.”

Both Barkley and Hurts downplayed the meeting as anything important or unusual. Hurts described it as “teammates being teammates” and “taking ownership for what we can and talking about how we move forward as a team so we continue to find ways to win games.”

All of this seemed to start in the wake of the Eagles’ 31-25 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brown, who had just two catches for seven yards in that game, made a cryptic post on social media after the game with a Bible verse.

“If you’re not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way,” Brown’s post said.

In an attempt to defuse the situation, Brown told reporters on Oct. 1 that his post “wasn’t directed at anyone in the building” and he just let his frustration get the better of him in the moment.

An Oct. 4 report from The Athletic’s Dianna Russini noted that Brown and Hurts, who at one point were said to be like “an old married couple” with how close they were, have drifted apart in recent years for no specific reason.

“Like any friendship, life happens,” wrote Russini. “Family responsibilities, the grind of being pros, shifting priorities. They’re friendly, but as one Eagles player described it: ‘It’s functional, professional.'”

On the bright side for Brown and the Eagles, playing on Thursday means they will have a long weekend to get away from things before returning to practice next week in anticipation of their Week 7 game against the Minnesota Vikings.