Howie Roseman shut down misguided narrative on Jaelan Phillips after Eagles trade
Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman's prized trade of the season was acquiring Miami Dolphins edge rusher Jaelan Phillips, but that move still came with some lingering questions.
The Eagles had to give up a 2026 third-round pick to get Phillips, but the defender fills a massive hole off the edge. 4.5 sacks by Philly's edge rushers this season were a big reason something had to change there.
One question being raised is Phillips' injury history, and concerns are being expressed about offering him a contract extension due to it. Roseman made sure to make his stance clear on the deal and his lack of concern with his injury.
“Obviously, there's no insurance on any of these deals. We gave up a third-round pick, which is a lot of compensation. We really went back, and whenever we make these moves for all three of these players, [we’re] really doing a deep dive on these guys and not just watching this year, but going back and watching through their career. [I’m] going back and reminding myself what we thought of them coming out and watching some of them in college, and watching those injuries. The Achilles happened on a Black Friday game, I think two years ago, at MetLife Stadium. The ACL was, I think, a teammate kind of went into his leg. So, it wasn't one of those non-contact injuries."
Phillips' injury history wouldn't stop the Eagles from getting him
The Achilles injury Roseman is talking about is Phillips missing the back half of the 2023 season and the beginning part of the 2024 season. In total, Phillips lost 23 games in those two seasons combined.
To start the 2025 season, Phillips has so far shut down talk of durability issues, as he has appeared in all nine games for the Dolphins. He's racked up 25 tackles, seven quarterback hits, three tackles for loss, three sacks, and one fumble recovery.
Roseman assured the media of his confidence that Phillips is going to come in and be an instant contributor to the Eagles.
"Just knowing the person and what kind of worker he is, the freak show of an athlete that he is, and seeing the effect that he had on the game this year. Watching him and just seeing the difference that he makes, and really, he's made every time he's been on the field since they drafted him. For us, it's so hard to find difference makers as players and as people that-- you don't want to live with regret in this job. I think when we came down to it and had the conversations, the regret would be not doing everything we can to try to maximize the ability of this team to win as many games as we possibly can and give ourselves an opportunity in January and, hopefully, February.”
Eagles fans hope to see Phillips on the field for their first game back from the bye week against the Green Bay Packers.
Eagles WR A.J. Brown Takes ‘Full Accountability’ for Social Media Crash Out
Maybe the Earth really is healing.
Philadelphia Eagles superstar wide receiver A.J. Brown told the media he takes “full accountability” for a postgame social media post following the Eagles’ 31-25 road win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 4.
The post seemed to indicate, with little interpretation, that Brown was ready to walk away from the Eagles after only having 2 receptions for 7 yards on 9 targets.
It’s the second consecutive year Brown has taken his frustration with not getting the ball to a public forum and second year in a row he’s aired those frustrations during an Eagles winning streak — the defending Super Bowl champions have started the season 4-0 headed into a Week 5 home game against the Denver Broncos.
“Obviously, Sunday after the game I let my frustrations boil over … That’s on me,” Brown said on September 30. “I take full accountability on that … My message on Twitter wasn’t directed at anyone in the building … Like I said, I take full accountability.”
While it’s almost impossible to believe Brown’s tweet wasn’t directed at anyone on the Eagles — players, coaching staff or executives — that’s probably the best apology any of them can hope for at this point.
Brown’s crash out came after the Eagles didn’t complete a single pass in the second half and one week after he had 6 receptions for 109 yards and 1 touchdown in a 33-26 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
“If you’re not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw,” the post read. “Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way.”
Future Hall of Famer Defends Brown From Critics
One Eagles legend came to Brown’s defense when it seemed like the rest of the world was against him.
“He’s being vocal and he’s telling everybody ‘I’m not (expletive) happy I’m not getting the ball right now,’ ” former Eagles center Jason Kelce said on the New Heights podcast on October 1. “Are there better ways to do this than tweeting it out? Potentially. We shouldn’t be just getting the ball to make him happy, we should be getting him the ball because he’s a (expletive) baller.”
Kelce is right about one thing — Brown is a baller and the results of getting him the ball are almost impossible to disagree with.
Brown Expert at Drawing Wrong Type of Attention
Brown signed a 3-year, $96 million contract extension with the Eagles before the 2024 season that kept him among the NFL’s highest paid wide receiver. He’s also been an NFL All-Pro in each of the 3 seasons he’s been in Philadelphia after a trade with the Tennessee Titans before the 2022 season.
The only thing Brown has seemed better at than catching passes the last few years is drawing attention to himself off the field in one way or another — usually something weird or negative.
In 2024, Brown called out quarterback Jalen Hurts after he had just 4 receptions for 43 yards in a Week 14 win over the Carolina Panthers — Philadelphia’s ninth straight victory in a 10-game winning streak.
It later turned out Hurts had been playing with a broken finger on his non-throwing hand.
In 2023, Brown and Hurts had what appeared to be an argument over the same issues.
