Wide receiver A.J. Brown could be on the field Sunday when the New England Patriots host the New York Jets in an AFC East matchup in Foxborough, Mass.
Brown practiced on Wednesday for the first time since sustaining a high ankle sprain in New England’s 13-10 Week 1 loss to Seattle. The Patriots (3-2) have 21 days to activate Brown from injured reserve, or he will remain on the list for the rest of the season.
“He hasn’t been out there for four weeks, so we’ll get him back out there practicing and see if he’s ready to go in a couple days,” New England coach Mike Vrabel said. “And if not, then we have a 21-day window, and we’ll go from there.”
Brown caught three passes for 26 yards before injuring his ankle in the third quarter of the Week 1 loss.
The Jets (2-3) ended a three-game losing streak by beating Cleveland 17-12 last week. Jets coach Aaron Glenn downplayed any notion of extra motivation entering a game against a divisional opponent that has beaten New York 18 of the last 20 times they’ve met.
“We really don’t focus on what happened in the past when it comes to us. We just focus on what’s happening right now. Division games are definitely crucial. Sometimes people say they count as two games. But the only thing we’re focused on is this is the one game that we have to play, the one game we want to win, the one game we have to prepare for.”
The Jets have committed just three turnovers through five games, with quarterback Geno Smith throwing six touchdown passes and no interceptions on 147 attempts.
“He’s done a fantastic job,” Vrabel said. “And so, if you want to try to create turnovers, you’re going to have to actually go out and force them. He hasn’t made many mistakes. He’s been really good with the football.”
New York wide receiver Garrett Wilson has 31 receptions for 374 yards and three touchdowns.
“Any time we can get Garrett involved, good things happen, and that showed (Sunday),” New York coach Aaron Glenn said. “He’s an elite receiver, he’s highly competitive and he can make catches that some guys just can’t.”
New England cornerbacks Christian Gonzalez (shoulder) and Carlton Davis III (neck) each missed New England’s victory over Las Vegas with injuries. Gonzalez practiced Wednesday in a limited capacity, but Davis was still sidelined. Cornerback Karon Prunty (hamstring) is the only other active New England player who did not practice Wednesday.
The Jets have the NFL’s fifth-best scoring defense (19.2 ppg) and will be facing a New England offense that may not have running back TreVeyon Henderson (ankle) or starting left tackle Will Campbell (knee). Henderson and Campbell were both injured against the Raiders, and, like Brown and Gonzalez, were limited in Wednesday’s practice.
New England quarterback Drake Maye was intercepted seven times during New England’s first four games, but completed 26 of 34 passes for 374 yards and four touchdowns without an interception during the Patriots’ 45-17 victory over Las Vegas last week.
“He’s had a couple of games where he didn’t play as well, but now you see exactly who he is. … They will never stay in that rut for a long time, especially guys of his magnitude,” Glenn said. “The way he’s getting the ball down the field, we have to do a really good job of making sure we defend the deep ball.”
Running back Breece Hall (quad), wide receiver Adonai Mitchell (finger), edge rusher Joseph Ossai (ankle) and offensive lineman Dylan Parham (knee) did not practice for the Jets on Wednesday.