Is moving on from Antonio Brown a realistic option for the Raiders?
The drama surrounding Antonio Brown is boiling over in Oakland.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are spending $21.12 million on Antonio Brown in 2019, even though he’s not on the team anymore. Pittsburgh was willing to sink one-ninth of its salary cap and lose the seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver in exchange for just third- and fifth-round picks in the 2019 NFL Draft.
That was a small return for losing one of the best receivers of the last decade or so. But the real coup for the Steelers was the quiet that came with Brown’s departure. After months of drama that played out in the public eye, Pittsburgh traded Brown to Oakland, where he immediately signed a three-year, $50 million extension.
The Raiders inherited the soap opera, and it hit them like a truck right before the start of the season.
Brown missed most of training camp due to frostbitten feet, while at the same time having a public battle with the NFL over his choice of helmet. He was fined over $50,000 for missing practices after he was healthy enough to return to the field and then threatened to punch Raiders general manager Mike Mayock in a “screaming match.”
Now, just days before the Raiders’ Week 1 game against the Broncos on Monday Night Football, the receiver is expected to be suspended by the team.
It may mean Brown’s time with the Raiders is over before it ever truly began. But how viable of an option is moving on from a receiver who has over $30 million in guaranteed money?
The Raiders may have a chance to cut Antonio Brown for free
For now, releasing Brown would stick the Raiders with $30.125 million in dead space for the 2019 season and another $15.167 million in 2020.
There’s a possible out for the Raiders, though.
A suspension for conduct detrimental to the team could void all of the guaranteed money that he received from Oakland in March. Brown’s salaries in 2019 and 2020 — which total a combined $29.125 million — could become no longer guaranteed and the receiver voided $500,000 of his $1 million signing bonus by not showing up for 85 percent of the offseason practices. The Raiders could part ways without paying a cent.
It’s not quite as clean as that makes it sound, though. If the Raiders suspend Brown, the receiver will do what he can to make sure that he doesn’t miss out on all that money. He’d likely file a grievance via the NFL Players Association to fight the suspension.
Even if the Raiders won, it’d be a messy distraction:
Re: Antonio Brown’s suspension, the Union could file an expedited grievance to fight the suspension, which means it would be heard within 7 days. That would bepainful for Jon Gruden b/c he would be dealing with Lawyers & Arbitrators next week instead of preparing for the Chiefs.
— Mike Tannenbaum (@RealTannenbaum) September 5, 2019
Considering the legal battle between the NFL and Tom Brady lasted a year and a half, and Ezekiel Elliott’s fight with the NFL lasted three months, don’t expect a potential conflict between Brown and the Raiders to resolve itself in a week.
It’s going to be a drama-filled situation no matter what the Raiders do. And if the team opts to jettison Brown, the offense will be in a rough spot.
Does the Raiders’ offense need Antonio Brown?
Oakland finished 28th in points scored in 2018. It traded wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Raiders halfway through the season and allowed tight end Jared Cook — the team’s only Pro Bowler last year — to walk in free agency.
Only two significant upgrades were made to the offense in the offseason. One was selecting former Alabama running back Josh Jacobs in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft and the other was trading for Brown.
If the receiver is released, it’d leave the Raiders with the following wide receivers on the roster:
Williams had 1,059 receiving yards back in 2016 when he was with the Chargers, but that’s about as accomplished as the group gets. Renfrow is a fifth-round rookie, neither Nelson nor Grant has ever topped 600 yards in a season, and Harris is mostly a return specialist.
While new starting tight end Darren Waller is a breakout candidate, he caught just six passes last season. The other option at tight end is fourth-round rookie Foster Moreau.
Oakland is starved for skill-position talent and the only player on the roster who would scare a secondary right now is Brown.
The Raiders may be setting themselves up for a legal battle with Brown, although Jon Gruden sounds like he’d rather smooth things over. It’d be in all parties’ best interest if cooler heads prevailed and the receiver stayed — and actually played — for the Raiders. It remains to be seen what will happen next, though.