A.J. Brown's ankle injury expected to sideline him for 6 weeks, NFL insider says

The bad news for the New England Patriots continues to get worse when it comes to wide receiver A.J. Brown's ankle injury.

Brown was placed on injured reserve, meaning he will miss at least four games, after he was hurt in the team's season-opening loss to the Seattle Seahawks.  

Ian Rapoport of ESPN and NFL Network reported on Sunday that Brown is likely to miss six weeks and not return until around Week 8.

"This is a little more serious. Six weeks, no surgery planned," Rapoport said of Brown's injury.

If that were the case, Brown would miss games against the Steelers, Jaguars, Bills, Raiders, Jets and Bears. If he returned in Week 8, it would be against the Miami Dolphins.

Brown suffered the high-ankle sprain early in the fourth quarter of the team's 13-10 loss to the Seahawks.

The veteran wide receiver did not speak to reporters after the game, but was seen wearing a walking boot. Patriots coach Mike Vrabel addressed the injury on Monday during his news conference. 

"Everybody's disappointed for him and he's disappointed. He wants to play. He's a competitor," Vrabel said. "We'll have to get him back as quickly as possible, obviously the four-game window, and make sure that he's ready to go mentally and physically when he does get back."

The Patriots will look to bounce back from their season-opening loss on Sept. 20 during their home opener against the Steelers at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.