Is A.J. Brown playing tonight? Why Patriots WR is off to slow start in Week 7 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
A.J. Brown's first season with the New England Patriots has not gone according to plan.
Brown had a quiet Week 1 and suffered a high-ankle sprain in the same game that forced him to miss a handful of contests after that.
Then, in his return in Week 6, Brown once again had a disappointing performance that included some ugly drops.
In Week 7 against the Chicago Bears, Brown is off to a slow start yet again for New England.
Here's a closer look at what's going on.
Is A.J. Brown playing tonight?
Yes, Brown is playing on Thursday night, he just hasn't been able to reel in a catch yet. He does have one target, though.
The Patriots' offense has not been crisp through two drives, with the unit getting just one first down, so Brown hasn't exactly had a chance to get going.
Drake Maye has connected on a few passes, but all three have gone to running backs Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson.
Hopefully the third drive and beyond will yield better results.
NFL schedule Week 7
Sunday
Pittsburgh Steelers at New Orleans Saints — 9:30 a.m. ET (Paris, France)
Cleveland Browns at Tennessee Titans — 1:00 p.m. ET
Cincinnati Bengals at Baltimore Ravens — 1:00 p.m. ET
Indianapolis Colts at Minnesota Vikings — 1:00 p.m. ET
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets — 1:00 p.m. ET
New York Giants at Houston Texans — 1:00 p.m. ET
San Francisco 49ers at Atlanta Falcons — 1:00 p.m. ET
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers — 1:00 p.m. ET
Denver Broncos at Arizona Cardinals — 4:05 p.m. ET
Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions — 4:25 p.m. ET
Los Angeles Rams at Las Vegas Raiders — 4:25 p.m. ET
Kansas City Chiefs at Seattle Seahawks — 8:20 p.m. ET
Monday
- Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles — 8:15 p.m. ET