Oakland Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown turned heads on Friday night when he posted a video about being labeled as a villain. For fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers and their former receiver, this was nothing new. However, Brown mixed up the formula by using audio from a private conversation with coach Jon Gruden as the soundtrack for this clip on YouTube. That little decision made his tenuous situation with the Raiders take a turn, and now it has changed for the worse.
Saturday morning, Brown posted a message on Instagram in which he said that “You are going to piss a lot of people off when you start doing what’s best for you.”
Videos by PopCulture.com
Again, nothing too out of the ordinary for the veteran, but what really made this post surprising is that he called for the Oakland Raiders to release him. This is quite the change a mere day after he stepped in front of the team and apologized for his behavior before telling reporters that he was ready to play for the organization and the fans. What changed?
According to Adam Schefter, the biggest change in the situation is that the Raiders fined Brown for conduct detrimental to the team. He received a $215,073.53 fine on Friday night for an incident on Sept. 4, which is when his altercation with general manager Mike Mayock occurred. This move voided the remaining $29.125 million worth of guaranteed money in his contract and set the stage for an eventual suspension or release.
To make the situation even more fascinating, Brown also emailed reporter Jeff Darlington and said that the Raiders “took away my guarantees. He also added that there’s “no way I play after they took that and made my contract week to week.”
Brown’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, believed that this situation was salvageable, but it’s clearly heading for a messy breakup. The Raiders can release Brown without suffering any financial loss, including termination pay. The receiver, on the other hand, wants to be released, but what team will give him a chance after his tenure in Oakland imploded after a mere six months?
