The Philadelphia Eagles are 8-2. They just won a Super Bowl. By any reasonable standard, this season has been a success. And yet somehow, the entire focus in Philadelphia has shifted from what’s happening on the field to what’s being said behind closed doors.
Reports about internal frustration with Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown’s very public discontent, and anonymous sources leaking grievances have turned this season into a circus. Rather than acknowledging actual issues those reports raise, a vocal segment of the fanbase decided the real problem is the people reporting them.
The Ringer’s Sheil Kapadia had had enough of it.
During the most recent episode of The Ringer’s Philly Special, Kapadia went scorched earth on Eagles fans attacking reporters who are simply doing their jobs.
Epic rant here by @SheilKapadia on fans attacking reporters because they don’t like them reporting what we see with our own eyes. pic.twitter.com/i2lWg8dm6n
— Patrick (@PhillyPMC) November 21, 2025
“Reporters are doing their jobs,” Kapadia said. “Dianna Russini, Derrick Gunn, these aren’t people who are just walking down the street saying, ‘Hey, what do you think’s going on with the Eagles?’ and then reporting that. When they say inside the building, they’re not talking to — I don’t even want to disparage anyone — but they’re talking to people who know things, have feelings, and they’ve known them, presumably, for a long time. And these are people of influence.”
He continued, “I mean, it’s so sensitive and soft. Like, honestly, this makes me — the Philadelphia I grew up with… You don’t just attack the reporters who are telling the truth. You have eyes, by the way. A.J. Brown’s pretty much telling you the same thing that they’re telling. So, stop being so soft and stop going online and attacking the reporters who are giving you this information. Honestly, it rubs me the wrong way. You look soft, honestly, if you’re doing that.”
Brown hasn’t exactly been subtle about his frustrations. During a Twitch stream while playing Madden with gamer Janky Rondo, following the Eagles’ 10-7 win over Green Bay, Brown was asked how he’d been doing. “I mean, no. Where have you been?” Brown replied with a laugh. “Family’s good. Everything else? No. It’s a sh*tshow. You on some ‘How you been?’ I’ve been struggling, brother.”
AJ Brown appeared on a twitch stream playing Madden with @JankyRondo and was casually asked how things were going…
“No. Where have you been? Like family good yea, everything else no… it’s been a sh*t show”
Also, said to drop him in fantasy later in stream. pic.twitter.com/WrtnQDFult
— Nick Earnshaw (@nearnshawradio) November 12, 2025
He also implored fantasy football owners to drop him from their rosters, adding after his virtual player caught nine passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns in the game, “I’m telling you, bro, that’s the only highlights of damn football I’m living right now.”
#Eagles WR AJ Brown on a Twitch stream last night: “If you got me on fantasy, get rid of me.” 😳
(via @JankyRondo, h/t @PHLEaglesNation) pic.twitter.com/tnR4fw5RHE
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 12, 2025
So when Russini’s report in The Athletic revealed that multiple offensive players have grown frustrated with Hurts’ approach this season, particularly against zone coverage, believing he’s become hesitant in tight windows and is leaning on checkdowns or scrambles instead of trusting what’s open downfield, it wasn’t exactly breaking news to anyone who’d been paying attention.
“There’s no more guessing about whether Brown is happy playing in this offense,” Russini wrote. “He told the world he’s miserable.”
During an appearance on The Seth Joyner Show, Derrick Gunn added onto that by reporting that “a lot of people in that organization that are frustrated with the QB situation,” comparing it to “Carson Wentz part 2.” Gunn elaborated that the issues discussed during film sessions and practice with the quarterback coach, offensive coordinator, and head coach don’t translate to game day, where Hurts plays “his game” rather than the game the coaches want him to play.
Derrick Gunn is on Mt. Rushmore of Eagles reporters. When he says something it is very noteworthy
DGunn says there are “lots of people (in the Eagles) that are frustrated with the QB situation”
Compares it to “Carson Wentz Pt. 2”
Full show: https://t.co/kYbQah5e1P pic.twitter.com/7pfiBtBWxr
— Eliot Shorr-Parks (@EliotShorrParks) November 17, 2025
Rather than processing what these reports might mean for a team trying to repeat as champions, a vocal segment of Eagles fans decided to shoot the messengers. Russini and Gunn both faced direct attacks questioning their credibility, their sources, and their motivations. Eagles fans have grown particularly tired of Russini’s reporting, with some claiming that she continuously targets the Eagles.
It’s the kind of shoot-the-messenger mentality that Kapadia — a Philadelphia native who has covered the Eagles for years across multiple outlets — finds not just frustrating but fundamentally un-Philly.
Here’s the thing: you don’t need anonymous sources to see there’s something fundamentally broken with this offense. The evidence is right in front of everyone’s eyes. A.J. Brown has openly spoken about his frustrations throughout the fall, he’s posted cryptic social media messages after games, made pointed comments about the offense in the locker room, and even had a 10-minute meeting with Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie at practice, where he reportedly pledged to stop airing complaints publicly while reiterating his desire to be more involved.
So, when your star receiver is calling the offense a “sh*tshow” on a livestream and telling fantasy owners to drop him, perhaps the problem isn’t the reporters documenting the dysfunction. But until Eagles fans want to readily admit said problem, they’ll continue to take their frustration out on the direct line between them and the locker room.