It’s been ‘a long time’ since the Patriots had conversations about A.J. Brown

Externally, a potential trade for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown has been one of the most talked-about topics around the New England Patriots since the NFL offseason started. Internally though, that may not be the case.

On Monday, Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf appeared on Up & Adams ahead of the NFL League Meetings in Arizona. Asked about the potential of trading for Brown, Wolf shared that hasn't been a topic of discussion as of late.

"A.J. Brown is a member of the Eagles, as Howie [Roseman, Eagles GM] mentioned yesterday," Wolf said. "We haven't had any conversations about anything regarding that in a long time."

Wolf references a comment made by Roseman on Sunday, before the meetings kicked off. Asked for the latest on Brown, who reportedly has become unhappy with his role in Philadelphia's offense, he gave a blanket answer.

"I understand that there's interest in the A.J. Brown story. I, unfortunately, don't have a home under a rock," Roseman explained. "But my answer to any question on A.J. Brown is A.J. Brown is a member of the Eagles. From my perspective, anything you ask me about A.J. Brown, I'm going to go right back to that answer. But I understand the interest. I put on TV and I see that there's interest, but my answer is A.J. Brown is a member of the Philadelphia Eagles."

Brown's trade status has been a complicated one, due to the financial ramifications. The dead cap hit Philly would incur by moving him is extreme - $43 million which would add $20 million to their current cap number - if they make a move before the post-June 1 checkpoint. After June 1, that hit can be spread over two seasons, changing the hit to just $16.4 million this year and save them $7 million against the cap.

Given that, there's been speculation that a lack of a move was due to the Eagles running out the clock on the cap. Whether they're 'not having conversations' because a deal can't happen for over two months, or because one or both sides aren't interested is open to interpretation.

However, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni did give a bit stronger of an answer when asked on Monday if he expects Brown to attend the Eagles' offseason program. "Nothing’s changed. We expect him to be an Eagle,” he said.

Brown, who is entering his age-29 season, caught 78 passes for 1,003 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games last season. If the Patriots do find a way to add him he'd give them a bigger, contested catch target on the outside to go along with free agency addition Romeo Doubs. All but one of the Patriots' receivers from last year remain with the team, with the release of Stefon Diggs creating the lone exception.