The New England Patriots open their home schedule Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers without A.J. Brown, who is expected to miss about six weeks with a high ankle sprain.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported the timeline last Sunday on NFL GameDay Morning. No surgery is planned.
“My understanding is the expectation is he misses six weeks,” Rapoport said. “Generally, it is four to six. This is a little more serious.”
The Patriots placed Brown on injured reserve last week, guaranteeing he misses at least four games: Pittsburgh on Sunday, then Jacksonville, Buffalo and Las Vegas.
Under IR rules, his earliest possible return is Week 6 against the New York Jets on Oct. 18. A full six-week absence would also keep him out of that game.
Brown was hurt in the third quarter of the season-opening 13-10 loss at Seattle on a third-down pass from Drake Maye. He stayed on the ground, walked to the blue medical tent, then went to the locker room and was ruled out. He wore a walking boot after the game, and an MRI the next day confirmed the high ankle sprain.
He finished his Patriots debut with three catches on four targets for 26 yards.
The offense came apart after he left. Maye threw three interceptions, and New England lost a fourth-quarter lead in the rematch of last season’s Super Bowl.
Brown, 29, came over from the Philadelphia Eagles in an offseason trade. New England, the reigning AFC champion, acquired him to give Maye an established No. 1 receiver.
The schedule does not ease up. Four of New England’s next six opponents made the playoffs in 2025. The stretch runs home against Pittsburgh, at Jacksonville, at Buffalo, home against Las Vegas, home against the Jets and at Chicago.
The receiver depth is thin.
The Patriots traded Kayshon Boutte to the Houston Texans late in training camp. That leaves Romeo Doubs, Mack Hollins, DeMario Douglas, Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III at the position.
Doubs, the top outside option now, went without a catch on three targets in the opener. One of those passes was intercepted on a contested throw, and another was a drop.
Doubs, Hollins and Williams are expected to handle the outside receiver snaps, with Sunday the first full game without Brown.
The Patriots have given no public indication that the timeline has changed since the report.
Kickoff is 1 p.m. ET at Gillette Stadium. If Brown misses the full six weeks, he would be in line to return around a Week 8 game against the Miami Dolphins.
