Broncos’ Jaylen Waddle trade just made Patriots' pursuit of A.J. Brown tougher

Mike Vrabel’s hopes of a reunion with star wide receiver A.J. Brown just took a fascinating turn.

One day after the Philadelphia Eagles agreed to a one-year deal with tight end Dallas Goedert, essentially clearing the decks for a potential Brown trade to the New England Patriots (from a salary cap perspective), the Denver Broncos swooped in and blew up the market.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Broncos have agreed to trade their 2026 first-round pick, No. 30 overall, as part of a package for Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle. The deal is essentially a first- and third-round pick in the 2026 draft, as well as a swap of fourth-round selections.

For a Patriots team holding pick No. 31 overall, things just got more complicated on the A.J. Brown front.

The Patriots’ price for an A.J. Brown trade just went up

The key factor to follow with the Brown speculation is the timing. The Eagles have been one of the NFL’s classic cash-over-cap teams under GM Howie Roseman, so dead money (or unavoidable cap charges for players no longer on a team’s roster) is almost always part of the equation. The Eagles currently sit seventh in the NFL in 2026 dead money, which is nothing new for their longtime financial strategy.

Brown’s contract is a shining example. Roseman has already utilized the NFL’s max of five voidable years in Brown’s deal for salary cap purposes. If Brown were to be traded now, or anytime before June 1, the Eagles would absorb a $43.4 million accelerated 2026 cap charge, per Over the Cap, meaning they would need to create over $20 million in cap space just to facilitate the deal.

The more logical path is for the teams to explore a trade later this summer, after the June 1 cutoff, when the Eagles would be able to kick a portion of Brown’s dead money into the 2027 league year. Per OTC, the Eagles would actually save $7 million in immediate cap space with that move, while absorbing that same number on their 2027 cap.

That’s a long way of saying that the Patriots’ 2026 draft picks were likely never seriously discussed. Any negotiations were likely focused on 2027 draft capital, which has been highly coveted around the league based on what’s expected to be a much deeper overall rookie class, especially at the QB position.

With the Broncos essentially sending late Day 1 and Day 2 picks to Miami for Waddle, the Eagles might’ve gained a bargaining chip in discussions on Brown. Philadelphia would likely take nothing less than a 2027 first-rounder from the Patriots at this point, and while the hope in Foxboro is for that pick to be once again in the 30s, the future draft capital game is a difficult one to play.

The Patriots have had a strong start to the 2026 offseason. If they’re able to land Brown, which seems to be trending that way after the Eagles not only re-signed Goedert, but added free agent wideout Hollywood Brown on a $10 million deal on Tuesday, their roster would be on par with any of the NFL’s top contenders.

But will Vrabel be willing to part with a first-round pick (or two Day 2 picks of similar value) in what’s expected to be a loaded 2027 draft? That’s the big question now, as any hopes for a summer discount on Brown may have just gone up in flames.