With the Broncos trading for Jaylen Waddle, what’s stopping the Eagles from trading AJ Brown? Here are the possibilities

In a conversation last Thursday, a league executive discussed the twists and turns of the The AJ Brown business saga.

Few around the league doubt that the (for now) Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver is a solid talent. Few doubt his production either. But as four days of legal tampering and then deal-making passed and Brown remained on the team that seemed determined to move him, one executive reflected on the reasons for that decision.

Complicating all trade scenarios is compensation between trade partners, salary cap implications and Brown’s physical health. But the executive added, after analyzing these factors, a comment that will soon prove ironic.

“If he was 27,” the executive said of Brown, “maybe it would be different.”

On Tuesday, the Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins seemed to agree.

THE The Dolphins dealt speedy receiver Jaylen Waddle, 27, to the Denver Broncos on Tuesday. in a deal with compensation eerily similar to what many around the league believe the Eagles are aiming for in a trade for Brown.

Denver sent its first-round pick and a third-round pick to Miami to acquire Waddle. The teams also swapped their fourth-round picks.

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At first glance, Miami’s value looked great. A first-round pick and more for a receiver who wasn’t top-10 in major metrics last season? And at second glance, the compensation is still strong.

But the first-round pick Denver sent to Miami wasn’t in the top 10, or even the top 20, in the 2026 NFL Draft. The Broncos dealt the 30th overall pick — which carries first-round upside like a fifth-year option, but also precedes the second round by just three picks. In a draft considered shallow in terms of high-end talent and high-end positions, the Dolphins’ first pick could give them talent closer to historic second-round value.

And yet: they acquired a first-round pick.

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – JANUARY 4: AJ Brown #11 of the Philadelphia Eagles acknowledges the crowd before the game against the Washington Commanders at Lincoln Financial Field on January 4, 2026 in Philadelphia, United States. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) — Could an AJ Brown trade from the Eagles bring in nearly the same returns the Dolphins got for Jaylen Waddle? (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

(Mitchell Leff via Getty Images)

Many in the NFL initially thought the Eagles could do something almost identical. In conversations with league executives and dealmakers last week, the New England Patriots continued to emerge as a logical destination for Brown. Of course, there’s Brown’s history at Tennessee with current Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. And after the Patriots released veteran wide receiver Stefon Diggs, Brown’s talents seemed increasingly needed. Even after the Patriots signed former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs, Brown’s value to a team contending with a rookie quarterback continued to make sense.

And the icing on the cake? If the Eagles’ general manager was determined to include a first-round pick in the deal, as many around the league believe, the Patriots could offer a compromise: Philadelphia could land the 31st overall pick, which, like the Broncos’ 30th, includes some of the capital advantages of the first round. At the same time, the Patriots could take solace in knowing that the marginal value of talent between pick 31 and the top spots in the second round was not significant. This could soften the blow of not picking until 63rd overall, especially when acquiring a player who will be 29 before the season starts.

Executives and talent evaluators still anticipate the Eagles will trade Brown before Week 1, six league sources told Yahoo Sports in conversations over the past week. And they still believe the compensation will look like the Waddle deal, with multiple picks, including a spot as high as the end of the first round.

But there is a problem in the Eagles’ ability to act quickly. This catch could explain why Brown is still an Eagle – and could also explain why many around the league wouldn’t be surprised if he remained an Eagle at the end of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Why the Eagles have June 1 circled on their calendar

Much of the NFL’s salary cap calculations are fungible.

Although the NFL sets a salary cap each year, rules exist for teams to borrow from last year. There are rules that help teams push the salary cap forward in future years, a popular mechanism as teams see consistent salary cap growth from year to year. And rules even exist for teams to act half as if a player had been released after June 1 (and therefore their cap charges can be factored into a future cap year) even if a team makes the decision to release the player and announces that decision publicly, beforehand.

Each team can designate two players per year as releases after June 1, allowing their cap charges to extend past that date, per CBA rules.

And yet, among all the possibilities for cap gymnastics written into the collective agreement and handled brilliantly by the teams each year, no mechanism exists for designations in trades after June 1.

In simpler terms: Teams that trade players before June 1 must take their entire cap hit that year, rather than sharing it with subsequent years.

Trade a player after June 1 and the magic cap options increase.

For Brown, this cost could prove prohibitive in the short term.

Because even if the Dolphins, who pay far less stars than the Eagles, were willing to absorb $26.3 million in dead cap space this year to trade Waddle, the Eagles have to be ready for (and have room to) $43.45 million in dead space for 2026 if they trade Brown before June 1st.

If they subsequently trade him, they will only need to spend $16.35 million of their 2026 cap hit on fees owed.

Again, in simpler terms: The Eagles must take on $27.1 million more in 2026 cap space to trade Brown before June 1 rather than after.

This could be one of the main reasons why the Eagles didn’t trade Brown last week. And that could make a draft week trade less likely than it otherwise would be.

Without the big dead cap consideration, a draft week trade for Brown would make perfect sense. After all, the Eagles originally acquired Brown via a draft day trade. Philadelphia’s influence could also increase during the draft if a team misses out on a receiver it was hoping to get because another team selects that player first.

And yet, any trade involving a 2026 NFL Draft pick would require the Eagles to absorb Brown’s entire $43.45 million dead cap fee in 2026. So some executives think a trade after June 1 is more likely, with compensation including a combination of picks in the 2027-2029 drafts.

How similar would a Brown trade be to the Broncos’ Waddle deal?

In seven professional seasons, Brown has surpassed 1,000 receiving yards six times. During the 2025 season, despite his vocal frustration with the Eagles’ offense, Brown’s 66.9 receiving yards per game ranked 12th. He had 1,003 receiving yards (19th) and seven touchdowns (tied for 15th).

Those numbers all top the metrics of Waddle, who averaged 56.9 receiving yards per game (26th), posted 910 receiving yards (25th) and had six receiving touchdowns (T-26th).

Brown is two years older and two more seasons on his tires than Waddle. He surpassed 1,000 receiving yards twice as many as his Dolphins counterpart.

A conditional draft pick can also help a team feel more comfortable acquiring a player who will be 29 by Week 1 and has a history of knee injuries that prompted him to surgeries on both knees.

Possible compensation options for Brown (in no order) could include the following, by executive:

A late 2026 first-round pick and a future third-round pick that could become a second-round pick if Brown reaches a participation or performance threshold
A 2026 second-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick that move to a second-round pick if Brown lacks playing time or performance thresholds.
A 2027 second-round pick that could become a first-round pick if Brown meets a participation or performance threshold, coupled with a second or third-round pick.
A similar structure with selections which will not begin until 2027

The Eagles could also be enticed to wait until after June 1 by the perceived strength of the 2027 draft compared to the 2026 draft.

The considerations are endless. And it’s possible the Eagles have already agreed to a trade in principle after June 1 that would become official as early as June 2 if Brown passes his physical (which, as Maxx Crosby and his knee showed last week, is not a given).

Some executives question whether Brown has more than a good year of playing time left, given his age and injury history. But many coaches still view Brown as a strength.

Waddle is younger and fresher, but the production shown by Brown is deeper.

“I don’t think there’s been any real decline,” former NFL offensive coordinator Scott Turner said Monday on Yahoo Sports’ “Inside Coverage” podcast. “The (Eagles) offense prioritized running the football. I know he was frustrated with their lack of targets (and) their lack of ability to get him the ball.

“AJ is such a big, physical guy. The further he gets down the field, those DBs, they’re lost (and) he’s going to make the play because of his physicality. Obviously, he can still run away from people with the ball in his hands.

“I think AJ Brown is one of the best receivers in this league, and I think he still is.”