Eagles Getting 'Creative' in AJ Brown Blockbuster Talks

It's going to be an explosive day across the National Football League on Monday.

Free agency is going to open up on Monday afternoon with things really starting to pick up at 12 p.m. ET. With the market about to open, it has led to a flurry of last-second deals as teams try to hold onto their pending free agents. For example, the Eagles reportedly have made "significant progress" in talks with Jaelan Phillips on a deal, but nothing has been finalized.

Unsurprisingly, this has led to a lot of chatter around Eagles receiver AJ Brown as well. He's been the subject of endless trade rumors. But right when the market opens, there's always a chance that interested teams solve their receiver questions elsewhere.

On Sunday, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that the Eagles are talking to more than just the New England Patriots, but there isn't a lot of momentum.

Will there be fireworks in Philadelphia?

Jan 11, 2026; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) looks on prior to an NFC Wild Card Round game against the San Francisco 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

"The Eagles have maintained conversations with several teams," Rapoport said. "It's not just the Patriots. There are some interesting teams. It certainly seems like the Rams have checked in recently on A.J. Brown as far as a potential deal there. But, just based on kind of where it seems things stand right now, I do not sense a lot of momentum toward an A.J. Brown deal. There have been, as I said, talks, and there were certain times where it seemed something might get done. I just don't sense that right now."

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo noted that Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has been trying to get "creative" in talks.

"I think a couple of things have been misunderstood here," Garafolo said. "In conversations with sources familiar with the talks with a number of teams. No. 1, this notion that the Patriots aren't willing to give up a first-round pick. There's a difference between giving up this year's first-round pick, which is No. 31 and next year's first-round pick, which was also a part of the discussion because that is an unknown.

"You don't know what that pick is going to wind up being. Potentially, it could be a lot higher. You already know that the pick this year can't get much worse. Well, it's at the back-end of the first round. Basically, for a lot of teams, that's considered a second-round pick because this is a bit of a thin draft. The other thing that I've come to understand, and this shouldn't really come as a surprise, was trying to be creative about these negotiations and say, 'Well, could we do sort of a split deal?' Like do half the deal now, and then finish the rest of the deal after June 1. This way, it's not as bad against the team's salary cap immediately."

If the Eagles can bring back Phillips, it will directly impact Brown. There are a lot of moving pieces and we should start to get some answers on Monday.