Eagles HC Nick Sirianni talks game plan for playoffs without A.J. Brown
The Philadelphia Eagles are going to be without top wide receiver A.J. Brown when they take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL Wild Card Round of the playoffs. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Brown "worked hard" in his rehab this week to be able to play but the sprained knee that he sustained […]
The Philadelphia Eagles are going to be without top wide receiver A.J. Brown when they take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL Wild Card Round of the playoffs.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Brown "worked hard" in his rehab this week to be able to play but the sprained knee that he sustained in Week 18 will keep him sidelined.
Eagles' head coach Nick Sirianni addressed Brown's injury and their game plan moving forward without him on Monday night.
"It was going to be a stretch for him to play," Sirianni said. "He did everything he possibly could to get himself ready. …He fought like crazy to try and do everything he could do to do so, which doesn't surprise me at all about A.J. He's tough and he would do anything for his teammates. Unfortunately, he won't be able to rip it this week."
Sirianni says he won't be leaning on just one guy to fill Brown's void.
"It'll be different guys [filling in]," he said. "Really excited about our guys. I think that's been one of our big strengths as a team is pass catchers we have. And when you look at it, you think about Dallas [Goedert], you think about A.J., you think about DeVonta [Smith] and then you think about D'Andre [Swift], the role that he has as well. I'm not even mentioning Julio [Jones] and those guys and Quez [Watkins] and OZ who have made plays throughout the year as well. So, excited for those guys to get a little more opportunity."
There is a chance Brown returns for the Divisional Round of the playoffs, per Schefter, though Sirianni did not confirm that. The Eagles must beat the Bucs to advance to the next round.
Brown finished the 2023 regular season leading the Eagles' receivers with 106 catches for 1,456 yards and seven touchdowns.
"Obviously, you always miss the contributions that A.J. makes," Sirianni said. 'He's a phenomenal player. But really excited about the opportunity and I know one reason we're in this position is because of the pass catchers we have in addition to A.J. Brown."
