Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has coached some of the best pass catchers in football over his career. He’ll now add A.J. Brown to that list.
McDaniels met Brown on Tuesday, less than 24 hours after the Patriots traded a pair of draft picks to acquire the All-Pro wide receiver. Just hours later, the two were on the practice field together for OTAs.
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While Brown expectedly was eased into the action, he made a quick impression on his new offensive coordinator, who saw shades of a Patriots hall of Famer.
“This is a big man,” McDaniels said. “Randy [Moss] was tall, certainly, and fast, and all the rest of it. I think, honestly, they’re all a little different. And I say they, meaning I’ve been fortunate to have a chance to be around some really good ones. Not sure if I’ve been around one that looks just like him.
“Maybe the closest thing I’ve seen is Gronk. This is a big guy. Does a lot of things well, and looking forward to seeing how we can acclimate him and fit him into our system.”
Listed at 6-foot-1, 226 pounds, Brown is known for his physicality both at the catch point and after it. Since 2022, he ranks fifth among all wide receiver in receiving yards after contact.
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“Big, physical, aggressive, explosive, has really good hands,” McDaniels said. “He’s just a competitive guy, and you watch him play, and there’s a force to the way that he plays the game. So, looking forward to getting used to the things that he can do that I don’t know about, which I’m sure there’s many of those. Had an opportunity to have a few different receivers come into our system at times, and you’ve heard about them, you’ve seen them, you’ve watched them play on tape, but then to actually get them on the grass and watch them do different things, it just brings the picture to life. So, looking forward to seeing all those things.”
Under McDaniels, bona fide No. 1 receivers such as Randy Moss, Davante Adams, and Brandon Marshall enjoyed some of the best seasons of their careers. Brown hopes to be next in line.
“Just from the short little period that we talked, I’m excited,” Brown said. “He’s given me a whole bunch of ideas.”
