Jalen Hurts will have to play against the New York Giants without his second-leading wide receiver, as the Philadelphia Eagles announced that A.J. Brown will not play in the Week 9 matchup and has been officially ruled out. Brown holds the second-highest amount of receiving yards among his teammates.
A hamstring injury is preventing Brown from assisting Hurts against the Giants. The announcement was widely expected, as Ashlyn Sullivan had reported earlier that Brown had missed practice: “AJ Brown not practicing for a third straight day with a hamstring injury.”
So far this season, Brown is the Eagles‘ second-best wide receiver in yardage with a total of 395 yards, trailing DeVonta Smith’s 504 yards. Additionally, he is the team’s leader in touchdowns (3) and has been Hurts’ favorite target with a total of 51 targets through eight weeks.
DeVonta Smith speaks out on Brown
For DeVonta Smith, not having Brown on the team is quite difficult. Despite being a man of few words, Brown is the kind of veteran that everyone listens to when he has something to say. Smith also made it clear where Brown’s heart lies.
How is Brown’s hamstring recovery progressing?
There is still no official report from the Eagles, but Jeff McLane posted on X that the receiver’s hamstring remains tight during recovery, which is the condition that has kept him out of practice with the team.
“WR A.J. Brown’s hamstring remained tight from scar tissue as the week progressed, an NFL source said. That’s why he didn’t practice all three days and has been declared out for Sunday’s game vs. the Giants.”