Colts will have to contain former enemy AJ Brown on Sunday
On Sunday, wide receiver AJ Brown will return to Lucas Oil Stadium, a place where he’s had success against the Indianapolis Colts.
During the 2022 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts and the rest of the AFC South rejoiced as the Tennessee Titans traded wide receiver AJ Brown to the Philadelphia Eagles. Brown had established himself as one of the best young wide receivers in all of football, so the division was relieved that Tennessee was seemingly regressing, and the rest of the AFC South didn’t have to see Brown two times a year anymore. However, the Colts do have to see Brown on Sunday.
When the 8-1 Philadelphia Eagles come to Lucas Oil Stadium for a Week 11 matchup, Brown will be coming back to the place that he has dominated. In his first three seasons, with the Titans, Brown played the Colts six times. In those games, Tennessee was 4-2 and AJ caught 21 passes for 344 yards and two touchdowns. No performance was more dominant than his last game against the Colts.
In Week 8 of last season, Brown traveled to Indianapolis and caught 10-of-11 targets for 155 yards and one touchdown. That came in a tight contest that the Titans won 34-31. Brown will definitely be looking to have a similar performance on Sunday with the Eagles.
Will Colts stop AJ Brown from dominating again?
Brown hasn’t slowed down with his new team. Through nine games in Philadelphia, AJ has 44 receptions for 725 yards and six touchdowns. He’s a big reason why the Eagles have been as good as they are and he’s also been key to the development of young quarterback Jalen Hurts. Brown is just three games removed from a Week 8 performance when he caught six passes for 156 yards and three touchdowns. However, he is coming off one of the worst games of his career, catching just one pass for seven yards against the Washington Commanders.
As Brown looks to bounce back, the Colts will be tasked with containing him. Fortunately, Indy’s defense has been playing really well this season and the starting cornerbacks are different than last year’s team when Brown went off. On one side is Stephon Gilmore, the veteran that has been playing clutch defense all season. On the other side is Isaiah Rodgers, the young corner that has been proving himself to the league.
Both Rodgers and Gilmore will need to play their best football on Sunday to slow down AJ Brown and the rest of the weapons that make up this explosive offense.
