Antonio Brown Debuts New Jersey Number In Patriots Second Practice

Antonio Brown had his second practice at Gillette Stadium. He practiced in a new, position-appropriate uniform wearing No. 17. Brown wore No. 1 on Wednesday, but switched to a new jersey number on Thursday. Brown worn No. 84 throughout his career, but this number is owned by suspended Patriots tight end Ben Watson.

Seven wide receivers have worn No. 17 in the Bill Belichick era: Dedric Ward, Chad Jackson, Taylor Price, Greg Salas, Aaron Dobson, Bernard Reedy and Riley McCarron.

ESPN’s Mike Reiss reported that Brown’s father, Eddie, had No. 17 during his time with the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League.

Some added significance for Antonio Brown and No. 17: His father, Eddie, wore that number for the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League. Colleague @JFowlerESPN wrote a piece on Eddie Brown's jersey retirement ceremony bringing father and son closer https://t.co/Bsyj0z9ieB https://t.co/fgMjplMDMB

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 12, 2019

There’s still no information about Brown’s status for the Week 2 game against Miami.

Antonio Brown has a new uniform number: 17 pic.twitter.com/JqlUkxA3k8

— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) September 12, 2019

Antonio Brown elevating. pic.twitter.com/1wieB52Ljc

— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) September 12, 2019

“We’re taking it one day at a time, just like we always do,” head coach Bill Belichick said when asked on Wednesday if Brown would join the team in Miami.

Tom Brady is willing to give his new teammate enough time to adjust to the climate.

“Just like a lot of new players, trying to get up to speed and so forth,” Brady said. “There’s a lot to learn. Coming into this time of year, I’d say is challenging. But that’s just the situation. It happens a lot throughout the NFL. Different players change teams and so forth. That’s happened over the years, so just trying to do the best we can do.”

The quarterback doesn’t pay attention to things that don’t get him involved.

“The only thing that I know what we can do is to go out there and work at it to meet and to communicate and get on the practice field and go through things. I’m not buying into any hype or potential. I’m into work. He’s into work and our entire offense is into doing what’s in the best interest for the team and I’m really excited to get to practice on Wednesday.”

The quarterback and his new target will spend more time this season. Of course, Brown has to clear up his reputation first.

“Yeah, you know we’re going to meet as much as we possibly can,” Brady said. “I think that quarterback-receiver relationship is so important. The more you know each other the more you know what each other’s thinking, the faster you can accelerate the trust and confidence in one another when you get on the field.”