New England Patriots wide receiver Romeo Doubs left Sunday’s game against the New York Jets with a shoulder injury and is questionable to return, according to ESPN reporter Mike Reiss.

Doubs went down moments after a 42-yard touchdown catch on a throw from quarterback Drake Maye in the first quarter at Gillette Stadium, according to the Patriots. The score put New England in front and topped Doubs’ previous career long of 33 yards for a touchdown, set with the Green Bay Packers.

He dove for the ball and landed hard on his right shoulder. Doubs stayed down in visible pain, barely moving his arm while trainers worked on him, then went to the medical tent and from there to the locker room, according to Patriots reporter Doug Kyed. The Patriots have issued no update beyond that initial announcement. In an outside assessment after reviewing video of the play, former NFL team physician Davis Chao speculated that Doubs suffered a right shoulder AC joint sprain and said an injection makes a return possible.

Patriots’ Receiver Depth Without Romeo Doubs

The injury arrived on the same afternoon A.J. Brown returned from injured reserve. Brown missed four games with a high ankle sprain suffered in the season opener against the Seattle Seahawks, and he was active against the Jets, according to Patriots.com staff writer Evan Lazar.

Maye had greeted that return with enthusiasm earlier in the week.

“It’s always a warm welcome in the huddle to have him back in there,” the quarterback said, as quoted by Sports Illustrated.

Doubs filled the vacuum while Brown healed. He played 83% of the offensive snaps in Week 5, and in Week 4 against the Buffalo Bills he finished with six catches for 58 yards and two touchdowns. His 17.1-yard average depth of target ranks fifth in the NFL, according to Kadlick.

Through five games, Doubs has 13 receptions for 219 yards and two touchdowns, an average of 16.9 yards per catch, according to CBS Sports. At 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, he gives Maye a big target on the outside and a threat in the red zone.

Without him, New England leans on DeMario Douglas, Efton Chism III and Kyle Williams. Chism has already stepped into the role Hollins vacated and drawn notice for his blocking, according to Kadlick. Mack Hollins is on injured reserve with a calf injury, which thins the group further. The Patriots play Thursday night in Chicago against the Bears, a four-day turnaround.

Romeo Doubs’ Career From Los Angeles to New England

Doubs, 26, was born April 13, 2000, in Los Angeles and attended Thomas Jefferson High School, according to Pro Football Archives. He spent four seasons at Nevada, piling up 3,322 receiving yards and 26 touchdowns, fourth and fifth in school history.

Green Bay selected him in the fourth round, 132nd overall, of the 2022 NFL Draft. That made him the first Nevada receiver drafted since Rishard Matthews in 2012, according to Mountain West Connection.

In four seasons with the Packers, Doubs caught 202 passes for 2,424 yards and 21 touchdowns in 59 games, according to NFL.com. He caught eight touchdowns in 2023 and set career highs of 724 yards and six scores in 2025. Green Bay also suspended him for one game in October 2024.

Injuries cut into his time as well. Doubs left the Packers’ wild-card playoff loss to the Philadelphia Eagles with a head injury, weeks after returning from a concussion that cost him two games, according to Yahoo Sports.

New England signed him to a four-year, $68 million contract in March. Sunday’s shoulder injury now puts that investment, and the Patriots’ depth chart, on hold until the team releases its next update.