AI Summary
5 min readJalen Hurts confirmed what many had suspected: he and former Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown had grown apart. In an interview with GQ, Hurts was asked about the relationship and answered with three words: "I mean, clearly." The admission came as Brown begins his first season with the Patriots under Mike Vrabel, after Brown had said in June that nothing happened between them and that people simply grow apart. The two were once extremely close—Hurts hosted Brown on recruiting visits at Alabama, they trained together in offseasons, and Hurts became the godfather of Brown's daughter. But Brown did not invite Hurts to his wedding, a breach that goes beyond the polite explanation of drifting apart.
Ben Maller, the host, argued that the real issue was football, not friendship. He pointed to the Eagles' reliance on the "tush push" near the goal line, which left Brown standing around as an expensive decoy. Brown wanted the ball in scoring situations, but Hurts and the offense kept running the quarterback sneak. "You can dress this up and say people grow apart," Maller said, "but in this case, I wanted the damn ball and I didn't get the ball." The tension had been building for years, not just the final season, and the relationship was already fractured when the Eagles won the Super Bowl.
Cowboys' Pickens dilemma is a farewell tour
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What you'll learn
- 1 (03:36) **Hour Open: The Philly Confessional** - Ben introduces the "Philly Confessional" segment and previews the lead stories: Jalen Hurts confirming he grew apart from A.J. Brown, Steven Jones on the Cowboys' receiver situation, and Robert Salah staking his reputation on Cam Ward.
- 2 (06:54) **Jalen Hurts Confirms Rift with A.J. Brown** - Ben reads the GQ interview where Hurts says "I mean clearly" when asked if he and Brown grew apart, while Brown had previously downplayed any falling out.
- 3 (11:58) **Cowboys' Steven Jones: Keeping Both Receivers "Really Difficult"** - Ben analyzes the Cowboys executive's statement about the difficulty of retaining both CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens long-term.
- 4 (15:55) **Robert Salah Stakes Reputation on Cam Ward** - Ben reacts to the Titans coach's guarantee that rookie quarterback Cam Ward "will not fail."
- 5 (21:02) **Segment Transition & Caller Benjamin** - Ben transitions to taking calls, mentioning the upcoming "Fact or Fiction" segment and a segment about someone who "claims to know love."
- 6 (23:59) **De'John Love & Tyreek Hill Trolling** - Ben briefly discusses former 49er receiver De'John Love's tall tales and Tyreek Hill's response, where Hill claimed Love could run a 4.2 40.
- 7 (28:57) **Caller Poppy & The San Diego Chicken** - A recurring caller named Poppy returns to the show and pitches a bizarre NFL prediction method involving a rhino at the San Diego Zoo.
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Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Ben Maller talks about Eagles QB Jalen Hurts saying on the record that he "clearly" grew apart from WR A.J. Brown, Cowboys exec Stephen Jones saying it will be "really difficult" to keep both CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens long-term, Fact or Fiction, and much more!
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