Antonio Brown: A Timeline of His Fallout With the Oakland Raiders

Image via Getty/Kevin French/Icon Sportswire

Once it became clear that AB was on the trade market, rumors about where he’d end up flooded the internet, with multiple options appearing feasible. At one point, it even seemed pretty certain he was headed to the Buffalo Bills. That rumor fizzled, though, and a couple of days later he was moved to the rebuilding Oakland Raiders. The Raiders had shipped their No. 1 WR, Amari Cooper, to Dallas in the previous season and were looking for a top pass-catching target for Derek Carr. 

In exchange, Pittsburgh received third- and fifth-round selections in the 2019 draft. It wasn’t too big a loss for Oakland, as the Raiders had loaded up on picks from dealing Cooper and Khalil Mack.

AB seemed to have new life on his first official day as a Raider. In a press conference, he told the media that “I’m here to elevate everything around me. I’m here to just be a surge of energy, of positivity, and good force. A great teammate and to bring out the best of everyone around me ’cause we all know it's not just about me.” Pretty ironic to read those words now.

Brown and JuJu were arguably the most dynamic 1-2 wideout combination in the NFL last season, and it seemed like destiny for Brown to eventually pass the mantle to the younger Smith-Schuster. But there was always a degree of tension in that relationship—even as they were appearing in Pizza Hut commercials together!—because A.B. didn’t want to pass the mantle to anyone. 

After the season, Brown’s frustration (jealousy, perhaps?) resulted in him tweeting that JuJu “fumbled the whole post season in the biggest game of year” after the Steelers had named JuJu offensive MVP. As it does these days, one stupid diss spiraled into a social media saga. You’ve got to feel for JuJu: the young wide receiver didn’t seem to do anything wrong, aside from being drafted by a team that had Antonio Brown.

While all this 2019 Brown nonsense was roller-coastering around the internet, Steelers safety and current ESPN analyst Ryan Clark had repeatedly criticized Brown, saying the receiver was a selfish “me guy,” a bad teammate, and “just not a good human.” Brown got fed up and fired back, threatening that “next time we meet it’s on site ain’t gone spare u.” The two exchanged shots on Twitter.

The first sign of trouble with his new team appeared in early August, when Brown posted a photo on Instagram showing his feet with some seriously nasty blisters, later determined to be frostbite. Apparently, the injury was caused by a failure to wear proper footwear during a cryotherapy session (stay woke). He ended up only participating in one of 11 training camp practices.

But oh, the drama was only beginning. One week later, Brown filed a grievance against the NFL for not allowing him to wear his favorite style of helmet, a Schutt AiR Advantage, which was not compliant with league standards and which the company had stopped making in 2011. I mean, he was desperate to wear this thing (he even threatened to retire if he didn’t get his way!). But an arbitrator ruled in favor of the league, rejecting Brown's grievance.

Brown was missing practice amid his ongoing helmet dispute, and the team’s frustrated GM, Mayock, issued a challenge to the receiver. “At this point, we've pretty much exhausted all avenues of relief," Mayock said of the helmet saga. "So from our perspective, it's time for him to be all-in or all-out." This marked a turning point at which pundits began discussing whether the Raiders would actually move on and trade or cut Brown, whom they had just acquired months earlier. (Oh yes, they actually would.)

Brown wasn’t over the helmet thing—far from it. He filed a second grievance against the league...which was also rejected. Brown said all his new options obstructed his view, so he was passionate about sticking with the AiR Advantage—the only helmet he had used in his pro career—but the NFL simply wasn’t going to allow it, Dikembe Mutombo’ing his efforts.

The helmet drama finally came to a close when Brown announced he would wear the Xenith Shadow helmet in the upcoming season. “Brown believes the Xenith Shadow makes him feel more agile and comfortable and allows for better visibility,” Adam Schefter tweeted. 

Raiders fans were finally able to relax—for, like, an hour. That same day, Brown received a $54,000 fine from Mayock for his absences from team events and practices.

Brown had posted a photo of the letter announcing his fines on Instagram, a disclosure which led to widespread criticism (why would he share that sensitive information?). The next day, the receiver confronted Mayock at practice; he reportedly called the GM a "cracker" (which Brown later denied) and had to be separated from the executive by teammates, including linebacker Vontaze Burfict. Brown also reportedly punted a football and told Mayock to “fine me for that.” The Raiders reportedly planned to suspend Brown for the fracas.

Though it seemed on Friday like Brown would be in the lineup for Monday Night Football, everything had changed 24 hours later. The Raiders voided the guaranteed money ($29.125 million) on Brown's deal, and Brown consequently demanded his release. His wish was granted. The team announced the transaction on Twitter, punctuating the bizarre Antonio Brown Raiders Era. 

And now, we wait to see what comes next. "Now that Antonio is a free agent, we are focused on the future and I will immediately work on signing him to a new team," said Brown's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, in a statement. "Antonio is looking forward to a new beginning."