Repeat Royalty: Brown Reclaims Crown in Eagles’ Pre-Camp Power Rankings

PHILADELPHIA – For anyone paying close attention to our annual countdown of the top 25 best Eagles on the current roster, the No. 1 reveal is a forgone conclusion.

After running back Saquon Barkley came out as our second-ranked player, there could only be one choice remaining, and that is receiver A.J. Brown. Brown holds down the No. 1 spot in the rankings for a second straight year.

The list is compiled by Eagles on Sports Illustrated beat reporters Ed Kracz and John McMullen. The two reporters did their top 25 separately, and a point system determined the final list with No. 1 receiving 25 points all the way down to one point for No. 25 to come up with the 25 best players.

Brown collected 49 points. McMullen had him first on his list. Kracz had Brown second. Kracz’s pick for the No. 1 player was Barkley, who finished second with 48 points, and was just third on McMullen’s list.

McMullen had Lane Johnson second on his list, but Johnson was third here. The right tackle was in the top spot two years ago on the Kracz/McMullen list before Brown’s run at the top began.

Brown is on a Hall of Fame trajectory and signed through 2029. When he signed his extension he was the highest-paid receiver in the league, but is now sixth, so perhaps a renegotiation will come at some point, especially if he keeps putting up impressive numbers.

In 90 career games, covering three seasons with the Titans and three with the Eagles, he has 446 catches for 7,026 and 49 touchdowns. In 2022, his first in Philly, he set a team record for most receiving yards in a season with 1,496.

“Process is always the same honestly regardless of if we won or not,” he said during OTAs. “It's always watching film, trying to rediscover yourself and to get better and find new ways to get better. Because you have to grow in this league, and if you don't, you'll get exposed. And as a team just growing, pushing each other each and every day, not worrying about the results at the moment but just worrying about the effort I should say.”

Brown, who just turned 28, is 1-1 in Super Bowls with the Eagles.

“The parade was very special,” he said about the celebration following the Eagles' Super Bowl LIX win in February. “I celebrated it and it was very fun, but after that moment, it was back to work. Back to trying to find new ways to get better.”

Here is the final top 25 list, from No. 1 to No. 25:

No. 1: A.J. Brown (49 points)

No. 2: Saquon Barkley (48)

No. 3: Lane Johnson (46)

No. 4: Jalen Carter (45)

No. 5: Jalen Hurts (39)

No. 6: Jordan Mailata (38)

No. 7: Cooper DeJean (36)

No. 8: Landon Dickerson (35)

No. 9: DeVonta Smith (35)

No. 10: Quinyon Mitchell (34)

No. 11: Zack Baun (33)

No. 12: Cam Jurgens (28)

No. 13: Dallas Goedert (27)

No. 14: Nolan Smith (25)

No. 15: Reed Blankenship (21)

No. 16: Nakobe Dean (20)

No. 17: Jordan Davis (19)

No. 18: Moro Ojomo (14)

No. 19: Jalyx Hunt (13)

No. 20: Jake Elliott (13)

No. 21: Kelee Ringo (8)

No. 22: Jahan Dotson (7)

No. 23: Adoree Jackson (5)

No. 24: Matt Pryor (4)

No. 25 (tie): Jihaad Campbell and Drew Mukuba (3 each)