LAS VEGAS – The Titans love everything about receiver A.J. Brown.
And, because of that, trading him away during the NFL Draft on Thursday night was especially difficult.
"The decision we made today, it was a tough one," Titans General Manager Jon Robinson said during a press conference on Thursday night in Nashville. "We really appreciate what A.J. has done here for our football team, on the field and in the community. We had discussions back and forth and we realized we got to the point where it was going to be hard to get a deal done (to keep him). So, the trade thing kind of manifested."
The Titans traded Brown to the Eagles during Thursday night's draft, and then picked Arkansas receiver Treylon Burks with the 18th overall pick of the first round, which was acquired from the Eagles in the trade. The Titans also received Philadelphia's third-round pick (101st overall) as part of the deal.
Robinson said the trade came together after recent conversations picked up.
"We wish A.J. nothing but the best moving forward," Robinson said.
The Titans drafted Brown in 2019, and his contract was scheduled to expire after the 2022 season.
Robinson said the Titans tried to keep Brown on a long-term deal, but the gap was too big in negotiations. After being traded to the Eagles, it was reported Brown agreed to a four-year, $100 million contract with the Eagles with $57 million in guarantees.
"These are the decisions I am faced with, and they are hard decisions," Robinson said. "There's a lot of discussion that goes into them, a lot of thought that goes into them. At the end of the day, we have to make – I have to make – the hard decisions. And there's a lot of things that impact those decisions. Certainly, the finances impact the decisions and trying to get value when we can. And that's the decision we made today."
In three NFL seasons with the Titans, Brown caught 185 passes for for 2,995 yards and 24 touchdowns. In 2021, Brown caught 63 passes for 869 yards and five scores.
Like Robinson, Titans Coach Mike Vrabel wished Brown well moving forward.
"I love all of our players – I love A.J. personally," Vrabel said. "I know how Jon feels about him. But I am very comfortable with how this went down and how Jon and I were able to navigate. I try to support him and make decisions. Unfortunately, we understand if we are going to be here a while, we are not going to be able to keep every single player that we draft and develop."
