Antonio Brown, the big ticket wide receiver that the Oakland Raiders traded for, has been the talk of the NFL almost all off-season.
He forced himself out of Pittsburgh in February and was subsequently traded to the Oakland Raiders for a third-round and fifth-round pick. Since becoming a Raider, in six short months, he’s been in the news on many separate occasions. The Raiders have been premiered on the 2019 HBO series ‘Hard Knocks,’ which gave Brown a stage to stand out and show up. On the show, he was portrayed, as many would assume, as a loud, super talented diva of a football player with the skill to do whatever he wanted.
Brown has also been in a back-and-forth, ongoing battle with the NFL about the helmet he has worn for his entire NFL career, landing on the banned helmet list because it’s a 10-year-old, outdated model. The helmet issue went to arbitration twice, he was denied both times, and was forced to wear a newer, safer helmet.
Then, he was missing training camp practices and other mandatory practices because he required treatment for a frostbitten foot from a cryo-treatment regimen he elected for. This instance was frustrating for the franchise at first because the star player was missing without any communication as to why, then it came out he was receiving treatment.
Once all the information was out, the team was seemingly more relaxed about the situation.
Next, Brown posted a photo of a written fine from General Manager Mike Mayock, on Instagram. The letter stated that he was being fined for missing a second mandatory practice and that if this behavior continued, fines and other team actions were the next steps. He titled the Instagram post with the text, “When your own team want to hate but there’s no stopping me now devil is a lie, Everyone got to pay this year so we clear.”
Finally, and most recently, Brown was suspended this morning for conduct detrimental to the team after he had a heated confrontation with Mike Mayock in the Raiders facilities. He reportedly told Mike Mayock he would punch him in the face, punted a ball angrily, and shouted at Mayock to “fine me for that.”
Antonio Brown’s actions leading up to this morning were already enough to have a franchise mad at him, the boiling point could be enough for the Raiders to do everything in their power to remove Brown from the equation completely. The NFL network implied that Brown’s fines and suspension could cost him $30 million dollars in guaranteed money.
The Raiders are set to play the Denver Broncos at home, on a prime-time game, to kick off Monday Night Football for the 2019 season. This is a huge game for both teams because their schedules are grueling for two teams trying to fight their way out of the basement of the NFL. Both teams are relying heavily on this game to start their season in the wins column. The Raiders were already without center Rodney Hudson and guard Richie Incognito, and now Antonio Brown adds another starter on offense to the list of players missing this important game.
With Antonio Brown playing, most thought this would be a close game, personally I thought the Broncos would win but narrowly, as the game is being played at Oakland. Now, without AB, the Raiders offense lacks any superstar caliber players, and they are facing the strength of the Broncos in their defense, that hasn’t ranked outside of the top ten in the last five years. The Raiders have a strong offensive line that will be missing two starters for opening night, they have a talented rookie running back with a lot to prove, and the rest of the offense outside of Quarterback Derek Carr doesn’t pass the eye test.
The Broncos have a great opportunity to go into Oakland and steal a big win over a depleted, rival, Raiders team. Antonio Brown, though considered by many to be a top wide receiver in the league, may have started a fight with the Raiders organization that could result in more severe penalties than missing a few games. His haughty and diva personality have again proven that, despite his incredible talent on the football field, that off the field he carries an aura of arrogance, self righteousness, selfishness and that can harm the team.
