After multiple months of rumors and speculation, the A.J. Brown era is officially over in the City of Brotherly Love. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Eagles sent the star wide receiver to the New England Patriots on Monday afternoon in exchange for a 2027 fifth-round and a 2028 first-round pick.

Ever since the Eagles’ 2025 season ended in the wild-card round in January, the writing seemed to be on the wall for Brown and his future in Philadelphia. The 28-year-old receiver still turned in a 1,000-yard campaign last season — 78 receptions (121 targets) for 1,003 yards and seven touchdowns, but his play at various points left much to be desired.

That said, Brown finished his four-year run in Philadelphia with four consecutive 1,000-yard seasons, 32 total touchdowns, two Pro Bowl nods, two Super Bowl appearances, and a Super Bowl title.

With Brown now on his way to New England, the Eagles can move on with the guys that they have at wide receiver. Even though filling Brown’s void won’t be easy, Philadelphia has a slew of receivers that should be able to create big plays in the passing game in Sean Mannion’s offense, including DeVonta Smith, who will assume the WR1 role.

Below, we’ll give our thoughts on where the entire Eagles’ WR depth chart stands after the Brown trade, and who could be starting alongside Smith when Week 1 rolls around.

WR1: DeVonta Smith

The 27-year-old Smith is coming off his third 1,000-yard season in 2025. The former first-round pick racked up 77 receptions (116 targets) for 1,004 yards and four touchdowns. Smith also averaged 13.1 yards per reception (third-highest mark in his career) and 3.8 yards after the catch per reception (third-highest in his career) in 2025.

Now he will step back into the WR1, which he hasn’t done full-time since his rookie season in 2021. During that season, Smith led a WR core that featured Jalen Reagor and Quez Watkins. As a rookie, Smith led the Eagles in receptions (64), targets (104), receiving yards (916), and touchdowns (5). Those weren’t terrible numbers by Smith, considering that it was also Jalen Hurts’ first year as the full-time starter.

Fast forward five years, and Smith has gotten better as a receiver, and Hurts has continued to grow as a passer. And now he’ll be the top option in a West Coast-style offense that will utilize motion, be more dynamic, and hopefully maximize his talents, along with the other WRs in the room.

If you want an example, think about how the Packers use Christian Watson across the formation to create matchups and explosive plays on short routes and plays down the field. There’s no reason to think that Smith can’t be used the same way and have another 1,000-yard season in 2026.

WR2: Makai Lemon

Taking over the WR2 role for the Eagles will likely be rookie Makai Lemon. The Eagles moved up a few spots in the 2026 NFL Draft to draft the former USC wideout, who is a perfect fit for what Mannion wants to do on offense. The 5-foot-11 pass catcher graded out as the No. 1 slot wide receiver in this year’s class by Football Gameplan’s Emory Hunt in his 2026 draft guide.

However, Lemon has the skills to be a factor on the outside too and create explosive plays.  He has great hands and will make the tough catches in traffic, which will be needed as the Eagles will be using the middle of the field a lot this season. His route-running is solid, and he knows how to get open in zone coverage, which is a huge plus.

When I think about how Lemon could be used in Mannion’s scheme, Jayden Reed comes to mind. He’s used mostly in the slot in Green Bay, but he’s a guy you want to get the ball in his hands quickly, whether that’s on a passing play or on a jet sweep. With the Eagles needing to fill the 121 targets left by Brown, Lemon will likely see a huge target share in his first year.

WR3: Dontayvion Wicks

Wicks is another guy in this Eagles’ offense who should see an uptick in targets. The 24-year-old wideout was acquired in a trade from the Packers in April and then handed a one-year, $12.5 million contract extension, keeping him in Philly until after the 2027 season. Wicks spent the last couple of years with Mannion in Green Bay, so there’s some familiarity for the first-time play-caller.

The 6-foot-1, 206-pound wide receiver has seen his production go down every year since his rookie season in 2023, but that’s more due to the amount of talent ahead of him in Green Bay. Watson, Reed, Romeo Doubs, and Matthew Golden all have a higher upside than Wicks.

Nonetheless, he should fit well as a possession receiver who will make an impact as a run blocker. Last year with the Packers, Wicks racked up 30 receptions (46 targets) for 332 yards and two touchdowns, which aren’t earth-shattering numbers. But the fact that Wicks only had two drops last year compared to the nine he had in 2024 is a good sign heading into this upcoming season.

WR4: Hollywood Brown

One could argue that the Eagles have the best WR4 in the NFC East in Brown, who signed a one-year, $5 million deal with Philly earlier this offseason.

Last season with the Kansas City Chiefs, the 28-year-old wideout turned in 49 receptions (74 targets) for 587 yards and five touchdowns. He also averaged 12.0 yards per reception in 2025, which was the second-highest mark in his career.

Depending on the game, we could see Brown or Wicks be the Eagles’ WR3 this upcoming season. However, one thing we know for certain is that he’ll give Hurts a viable deep threat, as he still has the speed to take the top off the defense. Between Brown, Smith, and Lemon, opposing defenses will have to pick their poison on which wide receiver they want to bracket coverage on.

WR5: Darius Cooper

For right now, we’re going to slide Cooper into the WR5 spot, but the former undrafted free agent will have a lot of competition to fend off. Cooper will be going up against the likes of Johnny Wilson Jr., Elijah Moore, Britain Covey, Quez Watkins, and Samori Toure.

Last season as a rookie, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound wideout had nine receptions (11 targets) for 92 yards in 13 games. He also played 212 offensive and 103 special teams snaps.

It’s hard to say right now what the Eagles are looking for at the WR5 spot because all these wide receivers bring something different to the table, whether that be as a run blocker, speed threat, big-body red zone target, or punt returner.

This should be one of the more fascinating training camp competitions, as depending on who stands out, the Eagles could keep six wideouts. But if that were to happen, it would mean one less player at another position.

[Photo courtesy of Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports]