In the months leading up to the Patriots trading for wide receiver A.J. Brown, it was almost a certainty that the Eagles were going to send the Pro Bowler to New England and nowhere else. There had been rumors of other teams inquiring about a deal, but the Patriots were always the frontrunner, and clearly that's what led them to make the trade.
In the midst of the inevitable trade, Eagles fans had gone from wanting to keep Brown around as long as possible, viewing him as a difference-maker for the offense, to waiting for the day a trade was announced so they could celebrate his departure.
For the most part, their bitterness over the end of Brown's tenure in Philadelphia remains evident on social media, but they might want to reconsider their enthusiasm after seeing just how poorly Jalen Hurts performed at OTAs.
What many fans deemed a good thing for the quarterback, Brown's absence is already impacting the offense far more than anyone anticipated, and that's a significant development, considering their Super Bowl window remains wide open.
Jalen Hurts' performance at practice has been much worse since the Eagles traded A.J. Brown
Hurts' struggles this spring have been well-documented over the past few weeks, with Anthony Miller of Inside the Iggles sharing his disappointed reaction to how OTAs ended for the quarterback in recent days.
He cited notes from Eagles reporter Eliot Shorr-Parks at practice, who shared a quote that sums up just how much the team is already missing Brown on the field.
"There are excuses you can make for the poor showing from Hurts and the offense. Learning a new offense, no DeVonta Smith and going up against what will almost certainly be an elite defense. All are fair. But that doesn’t change the fact that the result on the field for the offense was not a good one yet again."
Of course, it's just practice, and Hurts was down to more receivers than just Brown, but it's notable that his performance already appears to be affected in a way that Eagles fans were sure wouldn't happen if Brown were traded.
That's clearly not the case, and while it's just practice, it could be a sign of what's to come.
This puts a lot of pressure on DeVonta Smith, who is now expected to take over the role of WR1 again, which he held for a season before the Eagles traded for Brown, and they hope he can handle becoming the focus of opposing defenses.
Fans and the team will also hope that Hurts can pick things up in a more positive direction once they return for training camp this summer, and it surely doesn't help that Drake Maye and the Patriots are already looking great since Brown joined the roster.
That will almost certainly continue next month when the team returns to Foxboro, and that makes their decision to acquire the superstar receiver feel even better.
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