Brown’s practice window gives Patriots a path to restore another receiving option

A.J. Brown is moving toward a return for New England, but the first step is practice. Mike Vrabel said Wednesday that the Patriots are opening the receiver’s 21-day window after the ankle injury that sent him to injured reserve.

Brown is being designated to return from injured reserve, ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported from Vrabel’s update. The designation allows him to resume practicing. It does not by itself announce an active-roster return or make him available for Sunday’s game against the Jets.

Brown suffered the ankle injury in New England’s Week 1 loss to Seattle. The Patriots subsequently placed him on injured reserve while signing defensive tackle DaQuan Jones. Wednesday’s practice designation is the next roster step for Brown after that absence.

He caught three passes for 26 yards before leaving the season opener, according to the reporting on Vrabel’s press conference. His return would give Drake Maye another receiving option, though the team still has to decide when Brown is ready for a game.

The Patriots are also expecting cornerback Christian Gonzalez to practice Wednesday after a shoulder injury kept him out of the past two games. Carlton Davis, who is dealing with a neck injury, is not expected to practice, Vrabel said.

Offensive tackle Marcus Bryant is another player whose 21-day window is opening. Those developments make Wednesday a return-to-practice step for several injured players, with each facing a separate availability decision.

New England still is assessing whether running back TreVeyon Henderson and tackle Will Campbell need injured-reserve moves. Vrabel said those decisions likely would wait until the weekend. No such move was announced in the update.

For Brown, the confirmed change is the opening of the practice window. The Patriots have a way to evaluate him on the field again, while his active-roster status and next game appearance remain unsettled.

Sources

Patriots confirm Brown’s earlier IR placement · Vrabel outlines practice returns and pending IR decisions · NFL: Brown’s practice window and Patriots injuries