It’s been a tumultuous summer for Oakland Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown. Originally traded from the Pittsburgh Steelers, Brown’s offseason has seen him deal with everything from a cryotherapy accident to an appeal against the NFL’s ruling that he must wear a new, safer helmet model. Brown is currently scouring various social media networks like Twitter and Instagram in search of a helmet that both fits his personal specifications and matches the NFL’s safety standards.
He’s not the first player to adjust to new headgear. New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees also had to make the change a few years back, and he looks back on his first day with the sleek, futuristic helmet with a grin.
“I did not have trouble adjusting to it. It was more so the fact that it just looks like I am going to Mars instead of playing a football game,” Brees said after practice on Thursday. “So I put it on, I stepped in the huddle and Lance Moore, one of my favorite guys ever, he gets down and he looks at me and he stands up and he’s like, ‘Bro, I cannot take you serious wearing that helmet. I just can’t, I can’t even process the play you just said. I can’t look at you the same.’”
Sufficiently called out, Brees opted to ride out the NFL’s grace period until the older helmet models were phased out. “So I was like, ‘Oh, forget this stupid helmet.’ Go back to my old school one and rocked it for four more years until they outlawed it this year. I guess it is technically outlawed this year. But, it’s super comfortable. It feels good. Just looks weird.”
