FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- It may come as no surprise that New England Patriots cornerback Brandon Browner might need a little bit of time to shake off the rust.
Playing in his first game Thursday night after missing the first four games of the season due to a suspension and then being held out last week against the Buffalo Bills with an ankle injury, Browner was on the field for 42 of the Patriots' 87 defensive snaps in their 27-25 win. Although he didn't register any key stats, he committed two holding penalties while playing as part of a planned rotation with Logan Ryan.
"I felt a little rusty," Browner said. "I felt like I could play better. In the first half I felt like I was pretty tired out there. I can only get better from here. We'll look at the film and critique myself and only get better from here."
One couldn't blame Browner for being winded in his time on the field. With the Jets offense finding plenty of success on the ground, the Patriots' defense was on the field for more than 40 minutes, aided by a couple of three-and-outs from the offense early on. As a result, Browner frequently found himself on the sideline in the early going.
"No surprises," he said. "But I was kind of tired out there, you know. I've got to work on my conditioning."
In all, Browner said he was happy with the result and excited to get on the field as part of a division matchup with the rival Jets.
"It was fun," Browner said. "It was actually fun. I was fortunate to be out there to play. Last week I had an ankle injury, so I'm just happy to be out there playing football."
