A.J. Brown sets NFL record in Philadelphia Eagles win vs. Commanders
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has made plenty of trades throughout his career, but the move to acquire A.J. Brown may go down as his best.
Brown cemented himself in NFL history Sunday in Philadelphia's 38-31 victory over the Washington Commanders at FedEx Field.
With his eight-catch, 130-yard and two-touchdown performance, Brown became the first wideout in NFL history to record at least 125 receiving yards in six straight games.
Hall of Fame wideout Calvin Johnson and former wide receiver Pat Studstill, who played in the 1960s and early 70s, previously shared the record with five straight games of at least 125 receiving yards.
Brown remained humble about breaking the record, saying it wasn't a distraction entering the game.
"You got to be humble in this game, you got to come out and prove it each and every week, and that's what I'm trying to do," Brown said. "I'm trying to come in and work and try to be better each and every day."
The Eagles dug themselves in a hole early against the Commanders after fumbling twice within the 3-yard line and Brown helped the Birds rectify their mistakes.
Brown's first touchdown late in the second quarter came on an impressive one-handed catch that might go down as the catch of the year.
Brown rose up and corralled the dime from Jalen Hurts with one hand to make it a 17-10 game. Brown said he made an identical catch in practice Friday in the same spot of the end zone.
"My teammates were like, 'I'm not surprised, I'm surprised,'" Brown said. "They was in the game."
Brown's second score of the game allowed the Birds to tie the game, 17-17.
Late in the third quarter, Hurts lofted a pass that Brown snatched out of the air for 25 yards and fell into the end zone to give the Birds some life.
Brown and Hurts were a headache for opposing defenses last season, but their connection has only grown in Year 2.
In 2022, Brown had the best season of his career with 88 catches, 1,496 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. He's currently on pace to shatter all of those.
Through eight games, Brown has 60 catches for 933 yards and five touchdowns.
"I mean he's doing really impressive things," Hurts said. "He's playing at a very high level, he's been consistent and as a friend, I know what his mentality is and where it's coming from. It's not a surprise in the way he works, what he does in the offseason, where his mental is and his why. I'm proud of him as a friend and as a quarterback I'm proud he's truly invested in winning and putting the team first and doing whatever he needs to do in his role to win."
Brown wasn't the only Eagles wideout to have a massive afternoon.
DeVonta Smith and newcomer Julio Jones each hauled in touchdown passes from Hurts.
The score by Jones was his first as an Eagle and everyone on offense ran over to the future Hall of Famer after the touchdown.
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said the play was installed Friday and Jones and Hurts worked on it relentlessly.
"We was all excited, man, for the vet to get in the end zone," Brown said.
As far as owning the record, which he can still add onto, Brown said it still hasn't resonated yet. He's got bigger goals. And he knows the Eagles have to clean up the turnovers with the Dallas Cowboys coming to Lincoln Financial Field next week.
"It's going to be a war," Brown said.
But, as he always does, Sirianni had no problem giving his star wideout praise on this historic run.
"I want that jersey before the NFL can get their hands on it," Sirianni said jokingly. "Any time our guys can get a record or anything like that, the history of this league and this history of this game is special to me. And so, when you do something that no one has ever done in history and one of your players has done that, that's pretty cool. So A.J. has done it better on a six-game stretch than anyone to play this game and that's pretty special."
