FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — New England Patriots wide receiver A.J. Brown will be sidelined for a minimum of four weeks because he’s being placed on injured reserve with a right ankle injury, a person with knowledge of the move told The Associated Press on Friday.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team hadn’t announced Brown’s status.
Brown was injured in the second half of New England’s season-opening 13-10 loss at Seattle on Wednesday night.
Another person with knowledge of his injury told the AP that Brown has a high ankle sprain. The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because the Patriots hadn’t announced the severity of Brown’s injury, said an MRI confirmed the diagnosis.
New England’s next game is its home opener on Sept. 20 against Pittsburgh.
Brown left the game early in the third quarter following an incomplete pass from Drake Maye. He was falling to the turf as he tried to make the catch, and Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett’s knee made contact with Brown’s ankle, pushing it against the ground.
Brown had three catches for 26 yards before the injury.
His absence presents a challenge for an offense that was counting on him to be Maye’s top receiving option after the team didn’t bring back Stefon Diggs following a productive 2025 season. The Patriots traded for the three-time Pro Bowler in June.
Brown, 29, was durable during his four seasons in Philadelphia, playing in all 17 regular-season games in 2022 and 2023. That total dropped to 13 during the Eagles’ 2024 Super Bowl title season, and then 15 in 2025.
The Patriots also signed Romeo Doubs in free agency but traded Kayshon Boutte to Houston during training camp. Doubs didn’t have a catch on three targets against the Seahawks and had a costly drop on a second-and-14 in the fourth quarter that would’ve been a first down.
Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels will now look for more production from Doubs, along with fellow receivers Mack Hollins, DeMario Douglas and Kyle Williams.
“Any injury that you get at this point and time of the season you kind of approach it with an all-hands-on-deck kind of approach,” McDaniels said during an interview Friday on WEEI radio. “We’ve got a lot of different skill guys that can do a lot of different things. There isn’t one person on our roster that can replace anyone like A.J. in the middle of a game or for a stretch of the season. So, we’ll band together and we’ll figure out what we can do well and then try to get the guys in place to play to their strengths.”
Right tackle Morgan Moses said the offensive mentality doesn’t change while Brown is sidelined.
“We don’t blink at all. It’s always been the next-man-up mentality,” he said after Wednesday’s loss. “We know in that room we have some dogs. It’s not just one guy. When you have a room like that, full of guys that can make the play, you’re never thinking on one guy. The opportunity for the other guys to step up was there, and they did what they needed to do. A.J. (is) a professional, and he’ll do what he needs to do to get back.”
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