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Trade rumors have long been swirling around Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown, and the New England Patriots have frequently been mentioned as a potential landing spot for the veteran wide receiver.
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel did not rule out the possibility of his team trading for Brown when asked about it March 31 at the NFL's annual meeting.
"We've talked about this since last January. We're going to try to do everything we can to strengthen our roster through the draft, through free agency, multiple ways of player acquisition," Vrabel told reporters, per ESPN.
"So anything that we can continue to do to strengthen the roster, we're going to try to do."
Brown would certainly qualify as an upgrade for New England. After all, the Patriots released their lone 1,000-yard receiver from the 2025 NFL season – Stefon Diggs – ahead of free agency.
The Patriots signed Romeo Doubs to a four-year, $68 million deal to help replace Diggs. They also have returning a group of receivers – Kayshon Boutte, DeMario Douglas, Mack Hollins and 2025 third-round pick Kyle Williams – about which Vrabel expressed enthusiasm.
"There's a lot of guys that we're excited about," Vrabel told reporters.
Still, Vrabel acknowledged it won't necessarily be easy to replace Diggs' "efficiency." Adding Brown – who has generated 1,000-yard seasons in six of his NFL campaigns and spent three seasons under Vrabel's tutelage with the Tennessee Titans from 2019-21 – could go a long way toward making that happen.
But for now, Brown remains with the Eagles. And if Philadelphia does trade him before the 2026 NFL season, it would likely be after June 1, when the team could spread his $43.5 million dead-cap hit across two years. Otherwise, the Eagles would have to absorb Brown's dead-cap hit all at once, which would cost the team $20.1 million in present-year cap space, per Spotrac.com.
So, the Patriots could find themselves in a long-term waiting game as they continue to seek upgrades for their receiving corps.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Could the Patriots trade for A.J. Brown? Mike Vrabel weighs in
