AJ Brown reveals Titans' 'low offer' that proceeded trade
The Tennessee Titans' decision to trade wide receiver AJ Brown came down to one thing. Money. Brown was entering the final year of his rookie contract and he wanted to cash in on a lucrative extension. Wide receivers across the NFL have been receiving record contracts this offseason and Brown understandably wanted to cash in. […]
The Tennessee Titans' decision to trade wide receiver AJ Brown came down to one thing.
Money.
Brown was entering the final year of his rookie contract and he wanted to cash in on a lucrative extension. Wide receivers across the NFL have been receiving record contracts this offseason and Brown understandably wanted to cash in.
The Titans, however, drew a line in the sand. They wanted to keep Brown. And they were committed to keeping him in Nashville. But only at a certain price.
So what was that price?
Well, we know Brown received a four-year extension worth $100 million after he was traded to the Philadephia Eagles. That's about what folks expected Brown to get on a per-year value.
Brown told ESPN's Turron Davenport that Tennessee's offer was "low".
"This wasn't my fault," said Brown to ESPN. "I wanted to stay, but the deal they offered was a low offer. The deal they offered wasn't even $20 million a year."
Brown told Davenport that Tennessee's offer was $16 million a year with incentives that would've pushed the value to $20 million a year.
Last week, there was an Instagram live video that featured Brown talking to 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel. In the video, Brown tells Samuel that the Titans told him they knew he could get more than $20 million, but they weren't going to give him that kind of money.
That conversation foreshadowed the trade that went down on draft night.
Tennessee didn't have to make this deal. They could've kept Brown in 2022, placed the franchise tag on him after the season, and then traded him (much like the Green Bay Packers did with Davante Adams). A good season in 2022 would've made Brown even more valuable.
Now, Brown could've threatened to sit out, but it would be tough for a former second-round pick still on his rookie deal to sit out a year and deal with all of those fines.
It doesn't matter how you look at this trade, it's messy. The Titans could've approached this differently — especially since they've missed on their last two first-round picks and they don't have to worry about paying those players long-term.
If Titans fans are upset this morning, I can certainly understand why. Trading a star player when it's not necessary is never going to be a move that makes a fan base happy.
Featured image via Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
