Superstar wide receiver Antonio “AB” Brown never played a down for the Oakland Raiders after they acquired him in an offseason trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Brown’s attention-seeking behavior during the offseason landed him in hot water with his coaches and divided his teammates.
He was back at the Raiders team facility on Friday, Sept. 6, apologizing to his coaches and teammates after a series of distracting antics in the offseason.
Brown had good reason to apologize: he was on the verge of a suspension and his $20 million per year contract was in jeopardy.
His many distractions included threatening to retire because he wanted to wear his old helmet, which the league deemed a safety hazard.
Then on Friday, Brown posted a bizarre video of a phone conversation he had with head coach Jon Gruden, in which he complained that everyone portrayed him as the bad guy.
But the last straw was a report that he called Raiders General Manager Mike Mayock a “cracker” during a verbal altercation in the locker room Wednesday.
Brown later told Dianna Russini of ESPN he would “never use that word.”
On Saturday, the Raiders decided to cut its losses and released the troublesome 31-year-old wide receiver from his contract.
Brown became a free agent at 4:01 p.m. Within hours, the New England Patriots and Brown had agreed to a one-year contract worth $15 million.
The Internet’s reaction to the news of Brown’s signing was joy from Patriots’ fans and outrage from everyone else. Some of his former Raiders teammates reportedly said they were glad he was gone.
The NY Post published a scathing rebuke of the Patriots for giving Brown another job. The Post said the Patriots “deserve hell” for signing the superstar.
“Shame on the Patriots. They should get what they deserve with Brown, which at the very least is a collective season-long migraine headache, but at the worst a team torn apart by the nonsensical distractions Brown brings with him.”
And one commenter on NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk wrote:
“What a joke!!! Any cost to try to ‘just win baby’ He should be suspended for the racial slur period..end of discussion!! Over end of it!!”
The Patriots is Brown’s 3rd team in six months. Brown will suit up for the Patriots game on Sunday against his former team the Steelers.
I just got a text from someone I trust in the league and they believe this was all coordinated. That at some point AB got word that Pats would sign him if he ever got released.
— Robert Littal (@BSO) September 7, 2019
