After turning in a complete win over the New York Giants in Week 8, the Philadelphia Eagles have a week off to talk about their successes, their failures, and really set out a plan for the second half of the season, which should almost certainly feature more play-action from under center.
Forced into the look due to an injury to starting center Cam Jurgens, getting Hurts under center has really unlocked the Eagles' offense, forcing opposing teams to respect Saquon Barkley as a runner while providing more interesting options down the field in the passing game.
Discussing play-action's place in the Eagles' offense on NFL Live, ESPN's Mina Kime noted that this new wrinkle could do wonders for AJ Brown, who was a dominant play-action force for the Titans back when he was catching passes from Ryan Tannehill.
“Those are going to continue living in this under-center play-action world and expanding it which I think we both agree is a good idea. They got to find a way to activate AJ Brown. Yeah, go back to 2019, 2020, 2021,” Kimes explained.
“How many times did we watch Ryan Tannehill in Tennessee? Yes, under center, fake the handoff, and then just throw a rocket to AJ Brown. Crossers, deep digs, posts. During that time frame. He led all NFL receivers in yards for routes run of the play action. It is such a big part of his skill set. And frankly, it's something that Philadelphia hasn't really tapped into the crossers, the digs. And again, if they're going to lean in more into play action, I think there's such big play potential here for AJ Brown. Maybe make him happy. I don't know, but it's something that I think they have to do more again. If they're going to do it.”
With rumors of a Brown trade rearing their ugly heads once more in 2025 after some performances where he didn't get much done on the statsheet, some fans openly wondered if the Eagles held the star wide receiver out of action in Week 8 to avoid a potential injury before the trade deadline. While that could happen, it's more likely Brown will finish out the season in Philadelphia, with Kimes' idea a potential way for Nick Sirianni and company to sustainably keep him happy and their offense executing at the highest level.
If the Eagles are going to live in an under center play action world, AJ Brown *should* be a big part of it. pic.twitter.com/FlSIQsoqgR
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) October 28, 2025



















