A man with no friends, a man whose only dopamine rush is catching the ball, a man who’s the best receiver in Philadelphia Eagles history. A.J. Brown knows he’s different, on the field and off it.

There are a lot of layers to one of the stars who helped lead the Eagles to their second Super Bowl title last season, and we profile him here.

It’s a look at one of the most driven and complex talents in the league. You’ll have to check out the entire piece to get the complete story, but here are some of the tidbits:

Bench press duel with DK Metcalf: When both were at Ole Miss, they matched each other at 315, then at 320. Then there was the push-up challenge with weighted vests.

“We knew we were going to be the best at whatever we did. We didn’t let either one of us outdo the other one,”  Brown says.

No drugs: Brown doesn’t touch the stuff. What he does get is “that dopamine” from catching the ball. Which he does a lot. “Everybody knows the ball’s coming to me. I love that feeling. Like, it’s a rush.”

No “I’m proud of you”: Brown didn’t get that from his disciplinarian dad. But what he did get was a razor-sharp focus to keep improving, whatever the sport. Dad was his sharpest critic, but affirmations? Nope.

“Be that person you needed when you were younger,” he urged Ole Miss graduates at a commencement speech last year.

Fear of the farm system: An All-American outfielder, Brown was drafted by the San Diego Padres in 2016. Not wanting to be isolated in the minor leagues, he picked the gridiron over the diamond.

“I’m human, too. I didn’t know how to push past that. And I kind of avoided that. And I still ran into a situation where I had to stay patient,” Brown said of his time at Ole Miss.

Tension with Hurts?: It’s a story that keeps bubbling up, but whether or not the Eagles star receiver and quarterback are buddies is irrelevant. They’re arguably the top two players on offense — if they’re both on, this is a tough team to stop.

Brown says they’re “two alphas who want to be the best and demand greatness from each other and everyone around us.”

Contemplated suicide: Brown says he considered it in November 2020, during his second season. He said former Ole Miss teammate Elijah Moore (now with the Buffalo Bills) helped him through it by leaning on their faith.

No friends: No doubt, Brown loves his Philly teammates, “who I care about and I love.” But as far as friends in his life that he can count on, he just can’t go there..

“When it comes to friends, for me, that’s a tough subject. As far as close friends who I can truly, truly depend on, I think that’s just a lot. And I don’t want to place that on someone.”

There’s undoubtedly a whole lot more underneath the guy in the No. 11 jersey that strikes fear into opposing defenses. Click here for the full read.