A.J. Brown’s time with the Philadelphia Eagles saw him reach the pinnacle of the sport. Winning the Super Bowl with Jalen Hurts made it seem like Brown had all the tools to continue succeeding in Philly, but the 2025 season said otherwise. He was unhappy with how the offense was run, as it limited the number of receptions going to him.

Tom Brady recently picked Brown as an example to explain the emotional psychology of the WRs in the NFL. He stated it was important that they stayed happy, describing them as “Real Housewives of the NFL.” Although it came from one of the greatest QBs of the game, Emmanuel Acho did not think it was a fair assessment from the seven-time Super Bowl winner.

“Eagles fans don’t realize Tom Brady tricked you all by doing one simple thing. He started with the false premise,” Acho said on the Speakeasy podcast. “You got 17 games in a season. If I’m getting 10 catches a game, that’s 170 catches. Nobody’s complaining about that. Nobody’s complaining about 5 or 6 catches. Brady, you knocked that all the way down to 100 catches. That’s where the problem lies….So, Brady built his argument on a completely false premise.”

Brady’s whole argument was based on the varying number of catches WRs get every game.

“You have 17 games, you’re a great receiver, you’re going to catch 110 balls,” Brady said at the New Heights podcast. “One game you’re going to get 11 and one game you’re going to get 3, and the next game you’re probably going to get 11, then you get three.”

Brown’s disappointment could be pointed to the fact that he never breached the 10 reception mark even once last season with the Eagles. In fact, the one-time Super Bowl winner went 8 games with five or fewer receptions last season.

Former WR, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, understood Brown’s disappointment. Having played in the same era as Brady, he knew how the QB operated as a player and used that as a tool to reiterate Brown’s point.

“Brady never had this problem, and that’s why he’s Brady cause he fed his guys,” Houshmandzadeh added. “He knew they got the rocks, the good quarterbacks. They get their guys the ball, and you get results from it. I just don’t like the premise of, oh yeah, these wide receivers, they are so volatile man, they’re so temperamental.”

Brown had expressed his disappointment with the Eagles several times and even opened up to the media. Eventually, the franchise decided to part ways with him this offseason, and Brown is now with the New England Patriots, Brady’s former team.

In the 2025 season, AJ Brown had just 78 receptions, far fewer than the number Brady mentioned. While he managed to get to the 1,000-yard mark, it was two seasons in a row where he did not get much service.

Brady had Randy Moss as a WR. He ensured Moss got the ball and caused the damage he was capable of causing. In his very first season in New England, Moss had 98 receptions, which set the tone for a successful time with the franchise.

Housmandzadeh and Acho’s argument is that if Brown got a similar level of service, there would not be any controversy. However, that was not the case, and now the hope is that Drake Maye is able to fulfill his expectations and get him back to his elite level of production.