Eagles Owner Makes Surprise Decision in A.J. Brown Dispute
While the Philadelphia Eagles are by far the most recognizable part of his business portfolio, it’s not the only thing Jeffrey Lurie has to do.
He’s also an Academy Award winning film producer with the type of business acumen you can’t get from a Harvard MBA — he borrowed $185 million to buy the Eagles in 1994 and the team is now valued at approximately $8 billion.
So, with a net worth of $7.6 billion, when Lurie shows up at practice on a random Thursday in November, it’s worth remembering how valuable his time is. He wouldn’t be there if it wasn’t important.
In this case, the important thing was putting out fires in the locker room of the defending Super Bowl champions at the behest of famed Eagles head of security Dom “Big Dom” DiSandro.
This particular fire was caused by star wide receiver A.J. Brown, who went on social media (again) to vent his frustrations with the Eagles offense, this time describing the season as a “(expletive) show” during a Twitch livestream.
The Eagles are 7-2, winners of 3 consecutive games and have a 3-game lead in the NFC East Division.
“Today at Eagles practice Big Dom got Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie and AJ Brown together and it looked like they had a very good conversation about AJ‘s frustration and they all want the offense to be better,” NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark wrote on his official X account on November 13.
Ask yourself — what would you do if someone you were paying $32 million per year constantly complained about their job?
You might want to go have a talk with them.
Lurie’s Family Money Came From Hollywood
Lurie is the heir to a family fortune that began when his grandfather, Philip Smith, founded the General Cinema movie theater chain in 1935, which became one of the largest drive-in movie theater and movie theater chains in the country, and at one point operated over 1,500 screens across the U.S.
Lurie actually failed in two previous attempts to buy NFL franchises when Robert Kraft beat him to buy the New England Patriots, and Stan Kroenke beat him out to buy Los Angeles Rams before finally spending $185 million to buy the Eagles in 1994.
He’s also won 3 Academy Awards for documentaries, including “Inside Job” for Best Documentary Film in 2011 and “Summer of Soul” for Best Documentary Film in 2022.
Eagles Owner No Stranger to Controversy
While common sense tells us Lurie was probably at practice to have a “Come to Jesus” moment with Brown, a 3-time NFL All-Pro, he may have just been there to commiserate on how to make it through various media landmines of your own creation.
As Lurie passionately campaigned to keep the Eagles’ signature Tush Push play legal this summer, he ended up in his own maelstrom due to his comments doing so.
“Lurie (said) regardless of whether the play was banned, it was a ‘win-win’ for the Eagles, adding that it was like a wet dream for a teenage boy’ to create a play that was so successful that the only way for it to be stopped was for it to be banned,” ESPN’s Seth Wickersham wrote on May 21. “ … executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent chastised the Eagles owner for the ‘wet dream’ comment, specifically for saying it in front of women in the meeting.”
Bruce Drennan Points To Root Of Browns’ Ongoing Struggles
The Cleveland Browns have been one of the least successful teams in pro sports in the past couple of decades. Long gone are the days of the franchise being an NFL powerhouse.
That has been the case regardless of who’s been the head coach, the quarterback, or the general manager. Clearly, the issues run deep.
With that in mind, analyst Bruce Drennan recently named who he believes is responsible for the Browns’ losing culture.
“Culture. I repeat: culture. The culture of the Cleveland Browns is that they always find a way to lose, not to find a way to win. Question: Is the losing culture going to change if [Kevin] Stefanski remains the coach? I don’t think so,” Drennan said.
"Is the losing culture going to change if Stefanski remains the coach? I don't think so." #DawgPound
— Bruce Drennan Show (@Bruce_Drennan) November 13, 2025
Bruce is DONE with Kevin Stefanski after Sunday.
presented by @FanDuel https://t.co/GeM9cD6q5w pic.twitter.com/fAzVCz8Vic
Accountability Issues Plague Browns Despite Stefanski’s Efforts
To be fair, Stefanski isn’t the only person to blame for the state of things. He’s done a good job with the hand he’s been given.
But at this point, it might not even matter whether he’s a good coach or not. It’s a matter of accountability. It’s hard to keep players focused and motivated when everybody gets to keep their jobs regardless of the outcome.
Almost no one gets benched. It doesn’t matter how bad a game they have.
Things may have run their course under this coaching staff. While getting a new head coach isn’t going to fix all the underlying issues with the Browns and their culture, the turnaround has to start somewhere.
The talent is there, especially with the young rookies, but there has to be a clearer standard for performance. Coaching leadership goes a long way in establishing an identity.
A big move, whether the front office or leadership, may be necessary to signal a new era and give both fans and players reason to believe change is possible.
