Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Unless you’ve been living under a rock you know the biggest storyline within the Week 13 game with the Eagles is A.J. Brown facing the Titans for the first time.
The Titans unexpectedly traded Brown on the first day of the 2022 NFL draft in exchange for a first-round pick and a third-round selection, the former of which the team used to draft Treylon Burks.
And, to nobody’s surprise, the break-up wasn’t exactly clean.
“You know, it’s a business, and I’m not upset about the trade or anything because it is a business or whatever,” Brown said back in August. “But to be honest, I just didn’t appreciate how it all went down, and they just kind of blamed me for it. I’m man enough to say that, however people may take it.”
Since then, Brown has thrived in his first season with the Eagles, who sport the league’s best record at 10-1.
On the other hand, the Titans have struggled to get consistent production from their receivers. In fact, at one point Brown had more yards and touchdowns by himself than all of Tennessee’s receivers.
Things have gotten better of late for the Titans’ passing attack, though, as Burks has begun to break out, with 11 catches for 181 yards and one touchdown (recovered fumble) over his last two games.
Brown has become a villain with Titans fans for many reasons, whether it was his seeming desire to leave Tennessee, his Twitter spats with fans, or his trolling of Titans wide receivers in Week 9.
Both sides have kept it diplomatic during the week, but there’s no doubt the Titans want to shut down Brown as badly as he wants to light them up.
The only thing that can make an Eagles win worse is if Brown shines. On the flip side, the only thing that can make a win over Philly better would be if Tennessee can shut Brown down.
And, of course, the cherry on top would be if Burks outshines Brown in the process of a Titans win.
