You didn’t really think Antonio Brown’s helmet saga was over, did you?
Brown recently held out of Oakland Raiders training camp out of frustration over the NFL’s new helmet policy. The helmet model Brown has worn for his entire career no longer is permitted under league rules, which prompted the star wideout to file a grievance. The motion quickly was denied and Brown rejoined the Raiders ahead of their second preseason game.
Well, it appears AB is refusing to put the issue behind him. The seven-time Pro Bowl selection was absent once again Sunday, which led to a straightforward response from Mike Mayock. Oakland’s general manager claimed the organization had “exhausted all options” in search of a new helmet and made it clear to Brown that the need needs to know if he’s “all in or all out.”
Brown’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, unsurprisingly has a different take than Mayock on the state of the matter and he aired out his thoughts during an appearance on WSVN-TV.
“We’ve worked very closely with the Raiders, and we will continue to work very closely with the Raiders,” Rosenhaus said, as transcribed by ProFootballTalk. “I’m not sure that we agree that we’ve exhausted all the options, as [Raiders G.M.] Mike Mayock said. But there’s no doubt it’s still an ongoing process. We are trying to work with the team and the league and the union to come up with a solution. We haven’t figured it out yet. To say that AB is upset about the decision to not let him wear his helmet is accurate, but we’re still processing it and figuring it out. I wouldn’t make too much about him not being there today, as much as we’re still trying to come up with a solution that works for everyone.”
Rosenhaus says he expects Brown will be back soon but did note it’s a “major issue” for his client. As such, it seems like Brown isn’t going to budge until he gets his way.
