AB’s helmet crisis resolved, but more drama awaits
ALAMEDA >> And on the 26th day of training camp, all was right with the world.
Antonio Brown walked off the field with his teammates Tuesday at the Raiders’ facility, carrying what coach Jon Gruden said as an NFL approved helmet.
Courtesy of a “Hard Knocks” tease for episode three, Brown said his frostbitten feet have a “new layer of skin,” paving the way for full-on practice and putting him on track to be his old, playmaking self when the regular season begins Sept. 9 at the Coliseum against the Denver Broncos.
Once Brown was healthy, there really was no other way for this chapter to end. Not unless the
enigmatic wide receiver was prepared to put more than $30 million at risk. And while Brown may be one of a kind, he’s like every other player in the NFL in that he was going to follow the money.
When general manager Mike Mayock issued his “all-in or all-out” ultimatum Sunday before the Raiders’ final practice in Napa, Brown and agent Drew Rosenhaus had to consider what the “all-out” option really was.
If Brown remained absent — the second time he’d left the team in the Napa phase — the Raiders could have moved to void the guarantees in his deal based standard obligations of a player contract. The three-year extension
has a $1 million signing bonus and two years guaranteed at $30.125 million.
Brown’s only recourse would be to file a grievance, with the NFL making the final ruling. Given the way the grievance procedure went regarding his helmet, Brown had to realize his guaranteed money was in jeopardy.
So for the time being, until the next crisis, Brown is back and in good stead. There will be other issues at some point, because there always are with Brown. The Raiders knew that when they sent third- and fifthround draft picks to the Pittsburgh Steelers, figuring the tradeoff was 100-plus catches and double-figure touchdowns.
So with Brown back in the building, the least the Raiders could do was again give him their full public support, as Gruden did for the second time on Tuesday. They made a calculated gamble when Mayock gave his all-in, all-out statement, and it likely never got to the point where the Raiders
had to make any threat about voiding the guarantees.
But Brown knew it was out there. He doesn’t think or behave like most athletes, but Brown has always been adept at putting money in his pocket and maximizing exposure through his use of social media. In this way, he’s Marshawn Lynch times 100.
Gruden was adamant that Brown and the “Hard Knocks” exposure were not a distraction. And even with all the headlines Brown generated, there’s reason to believe him.
“Our film is out there for you to watch, our first two games,” Gruden said. “If you see a distracted football team then I disagree with you.”
Brown’s teammates realize he is a different character, and saw enough in the offseason to know how much he can help them win and put money in their pockets.
In a way, the Raiders, with Brown dominating the storylines, were able to conduct their training camp under cover of “The Antonio Brown Story” and have had what looks to be a very good camp save for the injury to right guard Gabe Jackson.
Camp is the baseball version
of spring training. No one has won or lost, there’s a lot of optimism and 32 teams believe it’s going to be their year.
Which will bring us to the regular season, with the rosters cut to 53, life and death expectations every week, and an asyet-to-be-determined story or controversy involving Brown. It’s part of his DNA. Keep in mind the Pittsburgh Steelers absorbed $21 million of dead space under the salary cap and dumped the NFL’s most productive receiver for third- and fifthround draft picks. That doesn’t happen by accident.
The Raiders know that’s coming too, or at least they should, reasons former Eagles president Joe Banner.
“People don’t change their stripes and we have an incredibly talented player who is extremely high maintenance and that’s who he is, that’s who he’s going to be and they shouldn’t be surprised,” Banner said on the Rich Eisen Show.
Why would Banner’s opinion matter? He was with the Eagles when they finally had enough of Terrell Owens and released him.
Having Antonio Brown on your team means navigating
the occasional minefield. The Raiders dealt with two during training camp — his feet and Brown’s insistence on a certain helmet.
As a practical matter, the helmet was the sideshow and the cryotherapy session that left his feet with frostbite was the bigger issue.
While quarterback Derek Carr and Gruden lauded Brown’s recall made it a point to remind everyone there was an off-season of work put in, the fact is the skill position centerpiece of the offense was essentially a non-participant in the opening phase of training camp.
Now the Raiders will make up for lost time, and hope to get Brown re-integrated with the system and at his explosive best by Week 1.
And what happens if Brown gets off to a slow start and Carr looks to other receivers? Or if he drops a pass or two wearing a helmet he’s been forced to wear?
That’s all part of the drama of having Antonio Brown on your side.
If the Raiders didn’t understand that before, they do now. They signed up for it.