A.J. Brown left his debut game with the New England Patriots early due to an ankle injury, recording just three receptions for 26 yards. According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo, it is believed to be a high-ankle sprain, and he is set to undergo an MRI on Thursday to determine exactly how long he will be out.
Even though the X-Rays for a fracture were negative, this is still far from ideal for Brown or the Patriots. Their whole identity on offense this season is going to be built on him and his strengths as a top-tier deep-ball receiver. The Mississippi native is meant to give Drake Maye (who was a mess on Wednesday night and had probably the worst game of his career) his best target as an NFL quarterback, and now it's looking like he's going to miss some time just as the Patriots suffered an embarrassing Week 1 loss (and are now set to face the Pittsburgh Steelers, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Buffalo Bills in their next three games).
(For some context: just last year, CeeDee Lamb missed three games due to a high-ankle sprain, but this is likely the best-case scenario for Brown - who is three years older than Lamb was. In 2022, Cooper Kupp missed the final eight games of the season due to a a high-ankle sprain.)
Patriots will miss A.J. Brown, regardless of how much time he misses
We saw it just last night: this Patriots offense can barely function with Brown.
Sure, it was against an elite Seattle Seahawks defense, and these guys probably just need more time to gel (especially because they didn't play a single snap together in preseason), but if that's a glimpse of what's to come in Brown's absence, then Patriots fans should be terrified.
Romeo Doubs was a complete negative on the field against Seattle (the Patriots probably win the game without his ridiculous wide-open drop on 2nd and 14 in the fourth quarter), and there are few reasons to think he'll do much better as a No. 1 receiver for the next however many weeks. DeMario Douglas was mostly a nonfactor, recording just 20 yards on five receptions. And while Mack Hollins was one of New England's few bright spots on Wednesday (four receptions for 51 yards -- made some very clutch plays), he doesn't have a high ceiling as a go-to weapon.
And on top of all of that, the Patriots' running game has already taken a big hit with the TreVeyon Henderson injury, and their offensive line (while mostly solid throughout the game), started crumbling a little in the second half against Seattle.
Not to be all negative right off the bat, but it is going to be very difficult for the Patriots to succeed without Brown moving forward. He is easily one of their most important players on the entire roster, and the team is going to greatly feel his absence.
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