PHILADELPHIA -- A.J. Brown swears he doesn't have an influence on his former Tennessee Titans teammates becoming Philadelphia Eagles.
First Zach Cunningham, then Julio Jones and now Kevin Byard. All in a span of three months.
In Brown's words, "maybe just a little bit."
Byard is the latest former Titans player to head to Philadelphia, as the Eagles acquired him in a trade to bolster a safety position that needed significant help. The former Titans captain was a team leader in Brown's first year, a player Brown looked up to while he was figuring that out in the NFL.
There's a reason why Brown gave the Eagles the seal of approval to bring in Byard.
"Oh he was excited," Byard said when asked about Brown. "We kinda were just celebrating a little bit. Obviously, I've known him since he got drafted to Tennessee. He knows what I can do as a football player. He knows what I can bring to this team, so we both were kind of just basking into the moment -- just kind of excited I'm gonna be a Philadelphia Eagle."
Brown reiterated Byard's words, finding it hard to contain his excitement when he knew they were going to be teammates again.
"I was really excited," Brown said. "He's a great leader, from the time I spent with him. He's a great person, great human."
The reason Brown is an Eagles captain is from Byard's influence when the pair were together in Tennessee. As Brown was heading into his second year, Byard -- a team captain on the Titans -- challenged Brown to be a leader himself.
"A.J. was already who he was," Byard said. "I used to tell him on days when the offense was starting off slow, even though he was still a young player, I would say to him 'Hey, you the dawg on the offense. You're the guy who can get guys going. You got the juice.'"
Brown was coming off a rookie season which he finished with 1,051 yards and 20.2 yards per catch, already the best player on an offense that had Derrick Henry coming off a 1,500-yard season.
The offense needed a leader. Byard knows Brown was the right man for the job.
"I was just trying to open him up," Byard said. "He's coming from not just being a first-year to second-year player to the leader of the offense. Just keep doing the things you're doing, but start being a little more vocal. Guys will respect you and listen to you.
"That was a little game I was trying to give him when he was a younger player."
Three years later, Brown is one of the most respected players in the NFL. He's also a team captain on the Eagles, carrying over lessons learned from Byard in Tennessee.
Now Brown gets to return the favor to a player he still looks up to. Someone he calls a good friend.
"You're a winner now," Brown told Byard on his arrival to Philadelphia. "Be prepared, things are a little different around here.
"But he's a great player and he'll have no trouble adapting. It's him."
