Away from pinging phones, away from all the red-alert headlines, A.J. Brown is at his locker. There’s no need here to decode his social media posts or deduce what reports are true. He’s talking about what actually matters to him.

He’s talking about why catching the football is existential for him. He’s talking about why a cathartic expression flashed beneath his trademark visor during a fourth-quarter sequence in which he broke three tackles on a go-ahead drive against the Los Angeles Rams.

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“I know everybody’s counting on me — that’s my thrill,” Brown tells The Athletic. “And then I come through. That makes me proud of myself. And I’m doing it over and over again. And then I got another opportunity a couple of plays later. Third down. Everybody knows the ball’s coming to me. I love that feeling. Like, it’s a rush. I don’t do drugs, but that has to be what drugs feels like. And I’m getting that dopamine. And I’m coming through for my team again.

“And that’s where the excitement comes from. And that’s why it’s frustrating at times. And maybe people really misunderstand me as a player, but those feelings — that’s what I want. You may see a little frustration. It’s because I really want to contribute. I really want to help this team win. But if I’m not getting the ball, obviously, it’s not as fun.

“Obviously, I want to win. That’s the main goal. But I want to help. I want to do my thing as well. And so it’s a little toll here and there sometimes. But I think that’s where the misunderstanding comes from, from everyone out there. But to be honest, I could really care less. This got me here. You know? And me playing this way, me having that drive, me having that mindset — it’s going to keep me here.”

Here is not a physical place. That’s worth remembering when the bulk of Brown’s world deals in those terms. Brown defined his destination back in training camp, back when he paused for 13 seconds before answering what was left for a three-time All-Pro wide receiver and Super Bowl LIX champion to accomplish.

“Being the best version of myself,” he said.

Anyone who has watched the Philadelphia Eagles since the franchise traded for Brown in 2022 has seen that version taking form. They saw how Brown immediately set the team’s single-season record for receiving yards. They saw Brown’s NFL-record streak of six 125-yard games in 2023. They saw Brown’s third straight 1,000-yard season in 2024, with touchdowns in Sao Paulo and the Super Bowl. They have seen what it means for Brown to exist.

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But when the catches stop coming, so do their meaning.

It is why it so often feels like Brown is talking about two things at once, why Brown sometimes avoids reporters after games; they must ask about the system, the plays, the wins, the losses; he must first confront the emotions, the confines, the contingencies beyond his control. It is also why Brown’s vented frustrations often lack a clear target, why his self-absorbed social media posts should be consumed with caution.

On Sept. 28, after the Eagles survived a near-comeback by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers despite clunky offensive play, Brown, who was targeted nine times but had just two catches for 7 yards, steered clear of reporters to sort out his feelings. He opened his phone and found a screenshot of a post featuring a verse from the Gospels — “If you’re not welcomed, not listened to, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way” — along with a caption calling God, “the only one we should ever concern ourselves with.”

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