AJ Brown’s career with the New England Patriots is off to a disappointing start. Although he missed four weeks with a significant ankle sprain, averaging just three catches per game and didn’t show up for Thursday’s practice, his coaches aren’t willing to sound the alarm.
It’s quite the opposite. The Patriots remain committed to the 29-year-old.
“It’s a small sample size for AJ,” wide receivers coach Todd Downing said Thursday. “I think a lot has been done in a few weeks. My hope, and his hope, and everyone’s hope, is that he gets some traction. I’m not worried about AJ’s situation at all. I certainly haven’t had the results that we had hoped for, but that doesn’t mean they’re not right around the corner.”
Brown joined the Patriots via trade with the Eagles this offseason and showed promise early in his tenure with the team. However, his regular season debut in Seattle was cut short when he sprained his ankle early in the third quarter.
New England then sent him to injured reserve, with his highly anticipated return to the field occurring in Week 7 against the Jets. This match, however, was difficult. There was some improvement four days later against the Bears, but the numbers still weren’t up to par.
In addition to catching just six passes on 14 targets for 53 combined yards in his previous two games, Brown’s knee injury also reportedly “flared.” After exercising on a limited basis on Wednesday, he did not participate in Thursday’s session.
This calls into question his outlook for Sunday’s game against the Dolphins. Long term, however, the Patriots remain confident in his potential and ability to contribute.
“He’s played eight quarters in almost two months and participated in four practices. I’m definitely in ‘This is a process to build our best football,'” offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said. “We’ve seen that with almost every player that’s come here since last year and we’ve obviously seen it this year with different guys.
“I think there are things we can work on and do better, and his health is definitely going to be a big part of that. When they tell us we can do A, B and C, we’ll do A, B and C. And if there’s something we have to wait on, then we will. I love his attitude and his approach. He’s worked his tail off here to put himself in a great position to help our team, and I know he’s going to do that.”
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