What A.J. Brown means for Jalen Hurts, Devonta Smith and rest of Eagles offense

The Eagles added a powerful weapon to their offensive arsenal this offseason, acquiring wide receiver AJ Brown from the Titans. The Ole Miss product rushed for more than 1,000 yards in each of his first two seasons and even had 869 yards last year after missing four games while the Eagles try to add an adrenaline rush to their passing game.

Brown joins quarterback Jalen Hurts and wide receiver DeVonta Smith in Philadelphia, who both produced an impressive one-two in Smith’s rookie campaign. Smith caught 64 passes for 916 yards last year, but the Eagles’ offense was based on running play. While the Eagles led the league in rushing in 2021, they ranked 25th in passing with 3,404 yards.

The Eagles are also hoping to get more out of Miles Sanders this season after he honestly had a stunning zero touchdowns last year. Quez Watkins, Zach Pascal and Jalen Reagor are the other notable names on the reception depth chart. In other words: the pressure on the first two is great.

While the Eagles didn’t have to completely stray from their identity last season, Brown’s takeover means there should be more targets available for hurts in the passing game. After all, they didn’t make him not toss him.

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What Did the Eagles Offensive Look Like in 2021?

In Nick Sirianni’s debut season as the Eagles’ head coach, their offense wasn’t entirely different from the rest of the NFL. They were 1-1 almost 65 percent of the time, so they often had three receivers on the field. However, the numbers don’t speak for them.

Dallas Goedert was the team’s No. 2 receiver behind Smith last year, with Watkins checking in at No. 3. Watkins should be able to live in his home in the slot with Brown in the herd, who played about 33 percent of the slot at the time last season. Watkins was there over 70 percent of the time, while Smith was there just over 10 percent.

Because the Eagles so often started with three receivers, Reagor was often a deadweight on the field. He had 33 catches for 299 yards last season and never seemed to handle hurts or what he was doing. Ultimately, a 7-on-7 squad of Hurts, Sanders, Smith, Reagor, Watkins and Goedert scared little in the hearts of the defense.

The Eagles made up for that with an impressive ground game. In fact, not only were they first in the league when it came to rushing yards per game. They were by far the first. They led the Colts by over 10 yards per game with 159.7 YPG last season, with Hurts contributing a lot. Don’t expect the Eagles to move away from that entirely, but they should be more well-rounded this season.

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Eagles 2021 WR Stats

player	RECORD	YDS	TD’s	catch%
De Vonta Smith	64	916	5	61.5%
Quez Watkins	43	647	1	69.4%
Jalen Reagor	33	299	2	57.9%

What will AJ Brown add in 2022?

Brown brings a dynamic threat to the Eagles, a player with real burn potential that forces the defense to respect all three receivers on the field when Brown, Smith and Watkins are into it. Mixing them with Goedert and Sanders already makes for a far more impressive 7v7 formation.

Brown also brings a great addition to Smith. Both players averaged over 12 yards in aiming depth, and Brown excels in downfield.

In fact, Brown’s biggest concern will be his health. He was hired, but he plays it through often.

In addition to Brown, Zach Pascal brings another slot option alongside Watkins to spell him out. Ultimately, Reagor – who Sirianni says is fighting for a roster spot – could be the underdog in this reception room.

player	RECORD	YDS	TD’s	catch%
AJ Brown	63	869	5	60%

Will the Eagles’ offense look different in 2022?

It has to — the Eagles didn’t trade Brown for nothing.

The current NFL needs quarterbacks to reliably make accurate shots, so there will be more pressure on the hurts this season. Hurts has become a pre-season MVP darling as the Philly QB spot takes more of the spotlight this season.

The Eagles could be trying to build in a lot of RPO this year, so getting the read right will be a pain in the ass. Brown has some of his best performances between 10 and 20 yards, so Hurts will have plenty of opportunities to find him.

Brown’s effectiveness and size should also make him a viable red zone threat. The Eagles were already good in the red zone in 2021 but would certainly like to see Sanders in the end zone at least once this season.