How healthy is the version of A.J. Brown who will suit up for the Patriots come fall?
That question is the biggest ‘what if’ surrounding New England’s blockbuster acquisition of three-time second-team All-Pro receiver, who spoke with media following a training camp walkthrough Monday.
“I don’t give life to it,” Brown said, when asked about scuttlebutt alleging he’s dealing with a lingering knee injury – something dire enough it may impact his performance with the Patriots.
Head coach Mike Vrabel outright accused such reports as untrue before practice began.
“I think a lot of things get fabricated and people tell stories. We did not --what other teams think or thought. We are very confident in where he is at physically. He has done every single thing. Will he do every single thing? Nope,” Vrabel said.
He then compared Brown’s situation to right tackle Morgan Moses, who has rested extensively through the first few days of training camp before the pads come on. Moses was a much bigger participant during Monday’s slowed down session.
Interestingly enough, Brown hasn’t appeared limited in any meaningful way. He hasn’t always connected with third-year quarterback Drake Maye thus far.
“Just being on the same page, communication, maybe the angle here,” Brown explained. “I may need to go a little higher or something, something small like that, because it's the details, [which] are very small in this league, and you know you got to execute it.”
Christian Gonzalez, who remains in contract talks with the Patriots but active in camp, hasn’t made life easy for the burgeoning Maye-Brown connection. Gonzalez has covered Brown through much of early camp. Brown called the cornerback a “stud.”
“Everybody knows Gonzo is stud,” he said. “Whenever I got to go against him, the margin of error is very small, and that's what you want. And those are my matchups, so I'll try with them those. CD [Carlton Davis] as well. So, it's good on good, and we're making each other better. We're in competition right now, but it's all for the greater good for the team.
