Patriots have an A.J. Brown problem that they need to figure out ASAP

The Patriots had countless reasons to trade for A.J. Brown this past offseason, and giving the offense a clear WR1 might be the most important. Since Julian Edelman retired after the 2020 season, the Patriots haven't had a superstar playmaker for quarterbacks to work with, and Mike Vrabel wanted to give Drake Maye that in Year 3.

Because Brown spent Weeks 2 through 5 on injured reserve, we didn't get to see all that he could bring to the offense with his new quarterback, and unfortunately, we're still waiting to see that connection after Week 7.

The receiver deserves some grace for his performances in the last two games, given they were his first games back and they played the Bears on a short week.

But Josh McDaniels will need to get Brown open sooner rather than later, since the Bears essentially took him out of the game last Thursday night, and that won't help Maye or the offense.

This isn't new for McDaniels, who has worked with Randy Moss and Stefon Diggs in years past, so he's not unfamiliar with Brown's caliber. And while it's not time to give up on the experiment yet, it could fall flat fast if the offensive coordinator doesn't figure it out soon.

A.J. Brown hasn't lived up to the hype with the Patriots just yet

His second game back last Thursday was far more productive than his return against the Jets, with Brown catching 3 of 6 receptions for 48 yards. But it was still far from what the Patriots need or brought him in for this summer.

He addressed the situation with reporters after the loss to the Bears, acknowledging that defenses will inevitably take him out of the game, which helps his teammates get open to make plays but doesn't get him involved in the way the Patriots want.

This isn't new for a superstar receiver like Brown, so the Patriots can overcome it. However, we need to see better effort from McDaniels to get him open; otherwise, it'll look like an absolute waste of a trade.

Brown is a phenomenal player, and there's a reason he has 7 straight seasons with 1,000+ receiving yards, something the Patriots desperately need. The teams he's been with have never struggled to integrate him into their offensive game plan, so it shouldn't be a problem for the Patriots either.

That's something they'll need to figure out now, knowing he'll likely be double-teamed or the main focus of defenses every single game.

It's been a long time since a superstar receiver has played in New England, so McDaniels hasn't often had the luxury of working with that kind of player. Yet he's proven he can turn receivers into superstars by including them in the offensive game plan, while also keeping players' confidence as some of the best in the league, so it shouldn't be a problem to do that with Brown.

Whether it means coming up with specific plays that ensure he's open, like utilizing more play action or trick defenses into believing they're about to run a play, or it comes down to Maye making throws into tighter coverage or moving Brown from the outside to the slot, etc., they have to explore their options before it's too late.

The schedule doesn't get much easier moving forward, making this a more dire situation to get figured out.

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