Getty Oakland Raiders WR Antonio Brown.
The Oakland Raiders‘ wild couple of days just keeps getting wilder. On Thursday, it looked like Antonio Brown was finished after throwing a tantrum because general manager Mike Mayock fined him. This included cussing, physical threats and racial slurs being hurled at Mayock in front of the team. It was almost a foregone conclusion that Brown would at least be suspended, but it’s also been speculated that the team could release him and not have to pay him guaranteed money. Brown has probably realized that if the Raiders cut him loose, nobody else is going to give him the same money. According to Josina Anderson, Brown has taken the first step towards forgiveness.
Source: #Raiders WR Antonio Brown just issued “an emotional apology” at a team meeting this morning, just now, “with team captains standing with him.”
He reportedly gave “an emotional apology” and the team captains had his back. This was not expected, especially since quarterback Derek Carr’s brother, David, reported that the team captains were cool with the Raiders cutting Brown, if necessary. While an apology doesn’t excuse the action for which he’s apologizing for, it’s a step in the right direction. Brown has had a problem recognizing his own faults in the past.
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Antonio Brown May Still Play on Monday
What a difference 24-hours makes. Ian Rapoport is now reporting that Brown may still have a chance to play on Monday versus the Denver Broncos and avoid a suspension altogether.
Here is a sense of how quickly things are changing in Oakland: Yesterday, #Raiders coach Jon Gruden told people AB was not in their plans for Monday. Now, I hear… there is a real chance he not only does not get suspended but actually plays. Wild times
That would be an insane turn of events if he ends up playing. There’s no doubt that the Raiders need his talents on the field. He’s the best player they have on the entire roster. The team could manage on offense without him, but he brings another dimension that isn’t easily replicable. The Broncos still have a great defense. This is a winnable game for the Raiders, but Brown increases the chances of victory quite a bit. The optics wouldn’t be great, but if the goal is to win football games, Jon Gruden and company may just sweep this whole thing under the rug.
Antonio Brown Gets Cryptic on Twitter Amid Drama
One thing that might fall under the radar amid all of this drama is a tweet that Brown liked from a former teammate of his, Rashard Mendenhall.
Antonio Brown likes Rashard Mendenhall Tweet.
“One day, if we ever look back at this, we’ll realize it wasn’t ‘drama’ with [Antonio Brown]… It was trauma,” said Mendenhall tweeted.
The two men played together for a few years in Pittsburgh, so it’s safe to say that they know each other. It’s interesting that Mendenhall seems to claim that “trauma” and not “drama” is the cause of Brown’s behavior. By Brown liking the tweet, it could be inferred that he agrees with Mendenhall’s assessment. Now, it’s unknown what the trauma he’s referring to is. Could be any number of things that the public isn’t privy to. Regardless, it seems like there may be more to this whole situation than meets the eye. If Brown does end up staying with the Raiders, it’ll be a fascinating development to watch.
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Raiders’ Antonio Brown Has Broken His Silence to the Team: Report