The quiet portion of the NFL offseason is nearly complete as the New England Patriots will soon open training camp. But following the last true week without football, this week’s version of our Sunday Patriots Notes is therefore a shortened one.
Naturally, there are always still a few things to talk about. So, let’s dive straight in.
Brown effect
Kevin Byard was teammates with A.J. Brown for three seasons in Tennessee. He saw first-hand the impact the wide receiver can make.
So much, he compared it to that of Justin
Jefferson’s in Minnesota, who Byard matched up with four times in his last two seasons in Chicago.
“When I was in Chicago, we obviously played against a guy in Justin Jefferson, and, for the most part, you need to point out where Justin Jefferson was on every single play,” Byard said on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “It’s the same thing with A.J. When I’m lined up at safety, and I’m deep back there, 12, 14, 15 yards, whatever, I’m going to identify where’s A.J.? You know what I mean? Like where’s he at? Is he lined up way out on the boundary at the X? Is he lined up in the slot or whatever?
“Let’s identify where he is, and now I can kind of get a good base on, OK, this is where the No. 1 player is. The running back’s here; tight end’s here. So, it just shifts your philosophy on how you want to play defense.”
Even at age 29, Brown has remained one of the most productive wide receivers in football posting four straight 1,000 yard seasons in Philadelphia.
Now in New England, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is expected to move Brown around to pick mismatches. But, Brown will still do much of his work as a big bodied X receiver on the outside — where he showcased an early impressive connection with Drake Maye in mandatory minicamp.
“Do you play cloud over top over top of [Brown]? ‘Cause you don’t really want to leave him one-on-one,” Byard said. “I mean that’s what A.J. does best. He’s going to run those slants, those quick dig routes, those go balls. I don’t think anybody in the league is better than him when it comes to those routes and being able to break a tackle and take it the distance. So, he’s just a phenomenal athlete, phenomenal talent.”
Over the offseason break, Brown got together with Drake Maye and other Patriot pass catchers down in North Carolina. As the two continue to build their chemistry, New England hopes Brown’s presence will help Maye lead another top offense in 2026.
Roster growth
In ESPN’s recent top-10 positional surveys, A.J. Brown was ranked as the ninth-best wide receiver in football — for many of the reasons Byard explained.
“He changes the coverages people play, everything will be rolled his way, and it will lighten the box for Josh [McDaniels] to really get the run game going,” a coordinator said. “He gives them run-after-catch explosion and isolation down the field on 50-50 plays that they didn’t have.”
Brown joined Drake Maye, Milton Williams and Christian Gonzalez as Patriots players to crack the top 10 at their respective positions. Hunter Henry, TreVeyon Henderson and Kevin Byard also received votes.
The Patriots’ representation in the rankings highlights just how much the roster has improved over the last year. At this time last offseason, Gonzalez was the only New England player to appear in ESPN’s positional surveys.
ESPYs
Drake Maye’s successful sophomore campaign earned him nominations for both Best NFL Player and Best Breakthrough Athlete at the annual ESPY Awards.
When the winners were announced Wednesday night, Maye fell short in both categories, with Myles Garrett taking home Best NFL Player honors and Alysa Liu winning Best Breakthrough Athlete.
In the Community
Before returning to Foxboro for their own work, Patriots players got to work in the community over the past few weeks holding a number of kids camps across the country.
That included Christian Gonzalez, Rhamondre Stevenson, Efton Chism III and Kayshon Boutte, Alijah Vera-Tucker, TreVeyon Henderson and more. To end this past week, Drake Maye held three camps with FlexWork Sports in both Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
“I told them to ask questions. I’m an open book,” Maye said. “I love pouring into kids lives. I remember being at this age, it’s probably when I started playing football — some of these six year olds. So, I love it.”
Forged
The Patriots released Season 2, Episode 2 of Forged in Foxborough on Friday. The 28-minute episode covers the early parts of offseason team activities and behind the scenes of acquiring A.J. Brown.
Week ahead
The Patriots will officially report back to Gillette Stadium this week with rookies and select veterans returning on Wednesday, July 22. Veterans will then follow on Friday, July 24 where head coach Mike Vrabel will then address the media. The first practice of the summer in then Saturday, July 25 beginning at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Pats Pulpit will have all your training camp coverage when the team returns to action. In the mean time, we will still provide you with daily coverage, including additional offseason wrap-up coverage, training camp previews, and our roster scouting report series. So, make sure to stay tuned.
