The Philadelphia Eagles feature one of the NFL’s best rosters thanks to general manager Howie Roseman. He (mostly) built his Eastern Pennsylvania juggernaut through shrewd maneuvering throughout the NFL Draft. A.J. Brown didn’t join the Eagles as a rookie, but he arrived in Philadelphia courtesy of a draft pick.
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Back in 2022, Roseman sent picks No. 18 and No. 101 of the 2022 NFL Draft to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for Brown. The move immediately paid massive dividends. Brown helped take the Eagles to Super Bowl LVII in his first year and was integral to them winning Super Bowl LIX. Despite this, he slipped slightly in the NFL’s Top 100 Players of 2025.
Brown, who notched his fifth 1,000-yard season in 2024, came in as the league’s No. 29 player. The placement is eight slots lower than the No. 21 spot he secured in 2024.
Brown’s small drop can be explained in part by injury. A groin ailment limited him to 1,067 receiving yards in 13 contests last season. Despite this, he still earned second-team All-Pro recognition. He did the same in 2022 and 2023, when he posted 1,496 yards and 1,456 yards, respectively.
A.J. Brown becomes latest Eagle on Top 100 list
With Brown’s inclusion, Philadelphia now boasts five players on the NFL’s Top 100 list. Their young star defenders — Jalen Carter, Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean — all find themselves on the board already, as does left tackle Jordan Mailata.
- No. 69 – LT Jordan Mailata; No. 60 – DB Cooper DeJean
- No. 49 – CB Quinyon Mitchell; No. 43 – DT Jalen Carter
DeJean and Mitchell earning such lofty praise after their rookie seasons is a testament to the Eagles’ coaching staff and scouting departments. What’s particularly wild, though, is that Philly will have more players coming to the list. Neither Super Bowl MVP quarterback Jalen Hurts, nor running back Saquon Barkley and right tackle Lane Johnson — both of whom earned 99 overall ratings in Madden 26 — have been revealed yet.
The #Eagles make up 2 out of 7 in the Madden 99 Club. pic.twitter.com/1G2rx7W42j
— Word On The Birds (@WordOnTheBirds) July 28, 2025
Barkley, following his record-breaking, Offensive Player of the Year-winning season, should wind up in the top 10. Hurts could easily follow suit. Johnson probably isn’t destined for a top 10 ranking, but is undeniably one of the best linemen in football. Together, with the aforementioned quintet, they have Philadelphia in great position to defend their Super Bowl championship. They’ll kick off their title defense versus the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 4.