The Leading Candidates To Replace A.J. Brown as Captain On Eagles

Brown was a captain the last two years, so who takes his place?

Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Being a captain is an excellent honor in the NFL. A.J. Brown was selected by his peers as a captain on the Philadelphia Eagles over the last two years.

Brown was one of eight captains on the Eagles roster, an impressive list of leaders that included Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley. No matter the perception of Brown in the aftermath of what transpired with the Eagles, he was a captain on the Super Bowl championship team and one of the keaders in the locker room.

Brown led in his own way. Whether it was the right way is up for debate, but that was Brown's reasoning for getting a message across. Again, he was voted a team captain by his peers regardless of the drama surrounding him. That has to count for something right?

With Brown in New England, the Eagles will vote for a captain to replace Brown. Who could it be on the offense? Or would it be someone on defesne?

The Eagles had five offensive captains last year (Brown, Jalen Hurts, Jordan Mailata, Lane Johnson, and Saquon Barkley), two on defense (Reed Blankenship, Zack Baun), and one on special teams (Jake Elliott).

Of course, the Eagles will have to replace Blankenship as a captain too. These are the candidates to replace Brown as captain, and also could be voted on to replace Blankenship as well.

DeVonta Smith (WR)

Smith is heading into his sixth season with the Eagles. He's long overdue to be voted as a captain, especially with how well respected he is in the locker room.

Not only is Smith a leader on the offense, he's going to be WR1 this season. He has the most receptions (385) and receiving yards (5,019) through a player's first five seasons in Eagles history.

The best is yet to come for Smith, who will have earned the captaincy if he's voted as one.

Jordan Davis (DT)

Davis has emerged as a leader on the defense since Fletcher Cox retired, and is one of the most respected players in the locker room. The Eagles gave Davis a three-year extension after he had his breakout season at defensive tackle.

With the young talent emerging on the Eagles defense, Davis is the one a lot of the players appear to gravitate towards. Wouldn't be a surprise if Davis was voted a captain this year.

Dallas Goedert (TE)

Goedert has been on the Eagles for eight seasons, and has never been a captain. That could change this year, based how how valuable he is to the organization and how he's willing to stick around despite his contract situation year after year.

Whether this is Goedert's last year with the Eagles or not, it may be time for the players to vote him in as captain. This would be a well-deserved honor.

Cooper DeJean (CB)

DeJean is entering just his third season with the Eagles, but he's one of the most well liked players in the locker room. He's also a really good football player, as evidenced by him scoring more defensive touchdowns in the slot (1) than touchdowns given up (0).

The popularity of DeJean could get him a captain's spot, but he may be too young at this stage of his career. If DeJean would get voted in as a captain, it wouldn't be a surprise.

Quinyon Mitchell (CB)

Mitchell is already one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL, and a First Team All-Pro to boot. The soft-spoken Mitchell is becoming a leader in the locker room by his work ethic and discipline, as he and DeJean are the leaders in the Eagles secondary already.

Hard work would earn Mitchell a captaincy, as he's learned a lot form the other captains over the years -- including A.J. Brown.