The Oakland Raiders have released wide receiver Antonio Brown and decided to proceed without one of the best players in the league. This happened after a period which was marked with the player’s constant problematic behavior, which eventually provoked the team to release him.
The news has been confirmed on the Raiders’ official Twitter account, with one brief sentence.
“The Raiders have released WR Antonio Brown from the team today.”
It is no doubt a shocking, but bold decision, of the Raiders’ management, who didn’t allow any blackmails from the player no more.
Brown asked to be released today, just 24 hours after he stated that “he is done talking,” and indicated that he would focus on the upcoming season and the team.
The Raiders have released WR Antonio Brown from the team today.
— Oakland Raiders (@Raiders) September 7, 2019
But after that, a lot of things happened, including another fine, a YouTube video, void of his guaranteed money which all resulted in his release.
Right since he came to the Raiders, Brown was starting to make troubles. At first, he didn’t follow the instructions about his recovery treatment and earned frostbites once undergoing a cryotherapy session in France.
Afterward, came his saga with the helmet where he lost two grievances against the league and missed most of the training camp. For the first time, AB caused the Raiders to be a bit annoyed with his behavior, although they supported him all the time during his holdout.
Back then the Raiders’ GM Mike Mayock publicly demanded for Brown to declare himself is he “all in or all out” regarding his future with the Raiders. Following that, the player stated that he is ready to play and appeared at the training facilities. He even found another helmet manufacturer and signed an endorsement deal with Xenith.
Xenith is excited to announce Antonio Brown has chosen to wear Xenith Shadow this season. When you’re the quickest receiver on the field, you need a helmet that can keep up. Read more about why AB chose Xenith Shadow at the link below. #XenithIsBOOMINhttps://t.co/okPWeoDU2m pic.twitter.com/bNLlZvZYLi
— Xenith (@XenithFootball) September 4, 2019
On September 4, Brown received a notice from the Raiders about his $54,000 fine, which he later shared on the social networks showing a huge dose of displeasure. He even accused the franchise of hating him, pointing in the direction of Mayock. The GM threatened that the team might release the player and that he could lose his $30 million of guaranteed money.
The situation was pretty tense when the two meet at Wednesday’s training session. Some sources are even claiming that there was almost a physical incident, but it was prevented by the quick reaction of other players and the staff. The Raiders were thinking about suspending the WR, but the things calmed down, and he even issued a public apology.
Jon Gruden announced that Brown would appear on Monday Night Football against the Broncos, and at that point, everything seemed just perfect. The player talked with the reporters afterward and stated that the “talk is over.”
The Raiders fined AB again yesterday, due to “unprofessional behavior.” Brown posted a video on YouTube last night in which he recorded his conversation with coach Gruden, and it appears that it was the last straw. The following day the management decided to put an end on Bronw’s childish actions.
In the morning the Raiders fined Brown with $215,073.53 and have voided his $29 million of guaranteed money. The player later asked to be released on his Instagram account.
And that is what the Raiders did.
Brown was expected to be the cornerstone of the new Raiders’ generation which would at some point attack the Super Bowl and restored the old glory of the franchise. He arrived from the Pittsburgh Steelers via trade, after creating all sorts of trouble there also.
Now, we expect to see where he ends up next.
Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
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