Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham looked to backtrack on some of his initial comments regarding the ongoing Jalen Hurts-A.J. Brown feud.
Speaking on the ‘Brandon Graham Show’ via Sports Radio WIP, Graham initially expressed on Monday how “I know 1 [Hurts] is trying and 11 [Brown] could be better with how he responds to things. They were friends, but things have changed.”
But he spoke with ESPN’s Tim McMahon later on Monday to clarify his earlier remarks. “I just assumed [about their friendship] and it made me out to look even worse because I had it all wrong and now people are going to run with that part,” Graham admitted.
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“I really just want to win, man, and I want brothers to be able to just hash it out. I’m going to make sure I apologize to both of them.”
Hurts completed just 14 of his 21 passes for a season-low 108 yards in Philadelphia’s narrow 22-16 win over the typically hapless 3-10 Carolina Panthers. The Eagles mostly turned to star running back Saquon Barkley to carry the offense, and he answered the bell to the tune of 124 yards on the ground.
Brown led the team with 43 receiving yards but received just four receptions. When asked to zero in on the team’s offensive malaise, he singled out the team’s “passing… what we did today is not [good enough]. It won’t help us.”
Hurts and Brown enjoyed a close bond on the field long before they became teammates in Philadelphia. The Eagles quarterback was Brown’s tour guide for a recruiting trip to the University of Alabama. Hurts is also the godfather of his star receiver’s daughter, Jersee.
Graham, currently in his 14th and final season with the Eagles, further stated: “I wasn’t trying to be divisive. I just didn’t want us to use the media in a bad way.”
“I made a mistake and I assumed that it was something that it wasn’t, he continued. “I just want to win so bad that I don’t just want to use the media when we need to talk about something and we can fix the problem ourselves. I didn’t add to it in a good light so that’s my bad.
Graham will miss the rest of the season after suffering a triceps tear in a November victory against the Los Angeles Rams. He will finish his career with the third-most sacks in franchise history.
The 11-2 Eagles will continue to push for the top seed in the NFC next week when they host the 10-3 Pittsburgh Steelers.
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