The Patriots already have an A.J. Brown problem on their hands just days after he joined the team and it’s something to worry about
A.J. Brown has been known to stir things up both on and off the football field. His latest admission should be a cause of concern for the Patriots.
The New England Patriots already have an A.J. Brown problem on their hands and it comes just a few days after pulling off the blockbuster trade that brought the Super Bowl champ to town.
Brown appeared on the “7pm in Brooklyn” podcast with Maria Taylor shortly after the move and discussed a variety of topics. The one that stands out the most, though, is his comments about leaking negative stories to the media in order to motivate his teammates.
“It was done purposely to give us a push,” said Brown. “I know if I say something in the media, I know it’s gonna propel us to work on it. If you say what you need to say in the media, which I won’t do that anymore, it gives everything legs and legs to push everybody to be better.
“Because pressure isn’t always a bad thing. It can also be a good thing, too. Honestly, I felt like it was okay to do, because we had a lot of guys in that locker room who are men.”
A.J. Brown says he won’t do this with the Patriots, but there’s zero guarantee he follows through
It’s an eye-opening statement, for sure, and the Patriots should be on guard. And man, does this add another layer of controversy to what has already been a controversial offseason.
How many of A.J. Brown’s teammates are going to wonder if he’s leaking stuff when the team starts struggling? The Patriots are the biggest regression candidate for 2026 due to their historically easy 2025 schedule and wealth of injury luck. There’s certainly a world where this team takes a major step back and the Buffalo Bills are in prime position to capture the AFC East. It’s not like the Patriots play in a division where all the opponents are below-average or bottom-feeders.
And as we’ve seen with Brown, it doesn’t have to boil down to wins or losses for him to get upset. Sure, he’s coming in as the No. 1 target in the offense and Josh McDaniels is one of the best offensive coordinators. But what happens when he doesn’t get the action he perceives is necessary to make him happy?
That’s the key in all this: A.J. Brown’s perception. He’s shown in the past he can have a different purview than what’s considered traditional norms and that can warp logic. Drake Maye could be peppering him with 10 targets a game, but even then that still may not be enough, in his eyes.
A.J. Brown has proven to be hard to deal with and when the going gets tough, he’s now admitted to doing what no NFL player (or professional athlete) should do and that’s air grievances to the media.
True professionals deal with matters behind closed doors. If Brown really thought the Eagles locker room had men in there, then he would’ve talked to them, you know, man-to-man. Not behind their backs. That’s not how grown men deal with problems.
This is not the tone you want to set coming into a new environment. We’ll see if this comes back to bite Brown and the Patriots during the regular season.