Sep 21, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver AJ. Brown (11) walks off the field after win against the Los Angeles Rams at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Fans Don't Buy "Uneasy" Postgame Moment Between AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith 1
AJ Brown made his move to the New England Patriots making an end to the AJ Brown-DeVonta Smith combination in the Philadelphia Eagles. The two are known to be really close but the tension arose from a brief moment after the preseason game between the Eagles and Patriots where a video caught them hugging after the match without speaking a single word.
AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith’s Tension After the Game
On June 1, 2026, the Philadelphia Eagles traded three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots in exchange for a 2028 first-round draft pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick. The deal had been expected for months.
Brown, who turns 29 in late June 2026, was coming off a frustrating 2025 season in which he recorded 78 catches for 1,003 yards and 7 touchdowns. He had grown dispirited with the Eagles’ offense after the team failed to defend its Super Bowl title.
NFL Insider Drops Bombshell on Patriots' AJ Brown PlansNFL Insider Drops Bombshell on Patriots' AJ Brown Plans
NFL Insider Drops Bombshell on Patriots’ AJ Brown Plans (Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images)
Brown and DeVonta Smith were close friends and productive teammates during Brown’s four seasons in Philadelphia Eagles. They formed one of the NFL’s best receiver tandems, shared a Super Bowl win, and maintained a strong personal bond. After the trade, any visible distance became a talking point. During the Eagles-Patriots joint practices in mid-August 2026, Smith confirmed they did not speak. Brown largely kept to himself around most of his former teammates that day.
After the teams’ preseason game on August 22, video circulated of Brown greeting Smith on the field. They shared a brief hug and a short exchange before Smith moved on. The moment didn’t seem right to the a lot and they escalated the thought that the relationship between the two players are not in good terms.
The caption of the post read: “#NFL fans are concerned with this interaction between #Patriots star AJ Brown and #Eagles WR DeVonta Smith on the field postgame. Brown & Smith barely spoke and fans believe they no longer like each other.”
TRENDING: #NFL fans are concerned with this interaction between #Patriots star AJ Brown and #Eagles WR DeVonta Smith on the field postgame.
Brown & Smith barely spoke and fans believe they no longer like each other.
AJ & DeVonta were very close friends. pic.twitter.com/16LilijMuW
— MLFootball (@MLFootball) August 23, 2026
While they established that narrative, most observers view the online reaction as classic over-analysis of a few seconds of post-game footage rather than proof that two former close friends now dislike each other.
Weak Narrative that the Fans Didn’t Buy
As the narrative tried to establish they have a bad relationship, fans think the over-analysis is not logical. Multiple replies pointed out that Brown had attended Smith’s wedding only about a month earlier. Ultimately it is a brief moment that happened after the game, and most fans understands this moment cannot simply represent their relationship.
“They already spoke at practice,” someone wrote.
“lol he was at his damn wedding like a month ago,” a fan commented.
“They spent 4 days together aith a joint practice im sure they are all talked out,” a user wrote.
“Most bogus post eva!,” another fan wrote.
“Trying so hard to get clicks. Lmao,” another fan commented.
The brief on-field moment has become less about what actually happened and more about what fans want it to mean. The fans seem to reject the narrative but the brief moment was strong enough to have make an attempt on it to make something out of it.
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