A.J. Brown takes shot at Titans after Deebo Samuel extension: ‘Basically all four of us got the same contract’

After months of uncertainty, San Francisco 49ers star wideout Deebo Samuel received the extension he had been after. Sunday evening, the 26-year-old agreed to a three-year, $71.55 million deal that can reach up to $73.5 million, and includes $58.1 million guaranteed. He was just the latest player to cash in on the exploding wide receivers market, as nine of the 10 highest-paid receivers signed their deals this offseason.

A.J. Brown was one of the receivers who got a visit from the Brink’s truck this summer, as he inked a four-year, $100 million contract with the Philadelphia Eagles. However, he was unable to strike a deal with the team that drafted him in the Tennessee Titans, and was traded on opening night of the 2022 NFL Draft before he could receive the money he wanted. 

Of the 2019 draft class, Brown and Samuel were two of four wideouts to get paid this offseason — with the others being DK Metcalf of the Seattle Seahawks and Terry McLaurin of the Washington Commanders. Brown noticed that he was the only one of the four that had to be traded to get paid; something he wanted everyone else to realize as well. Hours after the news of Samuel’s extension broke, he tweeted this:

“Basically all 4 of us got the same contract and I’m the only one got traded… yeah keep believing it was me. Anywho Go Birds #CarryOn.”

While the guaranteed money and years differ in all of the deals, Brown is pretty close to correct when talking about average money per year. In terms of AAV, Brown is the No. 5 highest-paid receiver, Metcalf is tied at No. 6, Samuel is No. 8 and McLaurin is No. 9, per Over The Cap. 

Brown has long maintained that it was not his choice to leave the Titans. The night he was traded, he even took to Twitter to say goodbye to Tennessee while adding “THIS WAS NOT MY FAULT” before deleting the message.

It’s curious as to why Brown and the Titans could not meet in the middle on an extension. Brown told ESPN Tennessee couldn’t come up with an offer that was worth $20 million per year. However, ESPN’s Dianna Russini reported that the Titans’ offer was more than that. While Brown said he wanted to stay in Nashville, Russini reported that Brown actually requested a trade, and was asking the Titans for guaranteed money close to a whopping $80 million. This figure was also reported by ESPN’s Turron Davenport, and SI’s John Glennon. Brown’s new deal with the Eagles includes $57 million guaranteed. 

Overall, it sounded like the Titans, Brown’s representatives and Brown himself were not on the same page in negotiations. This likely won’t be the last time Brown chirps at his former team. In fact, the Titans and Eagles square off this year on Dec. 4.