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Antonio Brown may no longer be a member of the Las Vegas Raiders but that isn’t stopping him from irritating people involved with the franchise. He continues to make the media rounds recently despite getting cut by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after a series of controversies. The wide receiver claimed that he was offered $200,000 from Tampa Bay to get mental health treatment. He then referred to a mental health facility as a “crazy house.”
Raiders defensive lineman Solomon Thomas was not with the team during the Brown fiasco of 2019 but he did not appreciate the wide receiver’s choice of words. In an Instagram story, Thomas ripped Brown and told him “not to disrespect those who are trying to get better.” He also told the wide receiver to “be better.”
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Thomas Is Heavily Involved in Mental Health Initiatives
These comments clearly struck a chord with Thomas, who has been a major advocate for mental health awareness around the NFL. In fact, Thomas and his family started The Defensive Line, a non-profit organization”reduce stigma around mental health and reduce suicide in young people,” last year, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal. This year, he pledged to donate $8,000 for each sack he had that would be matched by another donor. Thomas finished the year with 3.5 sacks, which would mean he’s donating $28,000 to The Defensive Line, and another $28,000 from the other donor.
The former first-round pick started getting involved in mental health awareness after his sister, Ella Thomas, died by suicide in 2018 at the age of 24. Thomas takes mental health very seriously and has become one of the biggest advocates in the NFL. Brown has ruffled a lot of feathers around the league but would be wise to not further stigmatize mental health awareness when players like Thomas are working hard to destigmatize it.
Raiders Would Be Wise to Bring Thomas Back for Another Season
Coming into the NFL, Thomas was highly regarded. He was the No. 3 overall pick by the San Francisco 49ers out of Stanford in 2017. He didn’t necessarily live up to his draft status after compiling 6.0 sacks in four years with the 49ers. He landed with the Raiders this offseason and ended up being a solid addition.
He played in all 17 games after only playing two last season due to a torn ACL. He finished the season with 3.5 sacks, 12 quarterback hits and 34 combined tackles. He did that as a rotational piece and didn’t start a single game. Thomas is the perfect type of player to have for depth purposes. He clearly has skill and can make some big players but it might not be best to have him on the field for every play.
The Raiders only signed him to a one-year contract last season so he’ll be heading back to free agency. If the team retains defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, it would make sense to bring Thomas back. Even if a new defensive coordinator is brought in, he’d still be a solid piece to have around.
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