The Antonio Brown era in Oakland went from wild to absurd on Thursday when reports said that the receiver and general manager Mike Mayock had gotten into an “exchange” and that Brown could be suspended.
What could happen after that is anyone’s guess. It could be just a one-game suspension, it could lead to a situation in which Brown doesn’t play a down for the Raiders … who knows.
Obviously, that will have a huge effect on the Raiders’ offense, and that, in turn, will resonate in fantasy football.
So how should you handle Oakland players in fantasy? Let’s go over who’s affected:
Antonio Brown
You knew there was risk in drafting him after the injuries to his feet due to a cryotherapy mishap and the helmet battle. That said, he’s still a premiere receiving talent and there’s still so much uncertainty here. I know I don’t need to tell you to hang on to him, but here: Don’t drop him. One of the possibilities is he ends up on another NFL team and thrives.
Derek Carr
I wasn’t high on him this year to begin with even without Brown. His numbers last year (4,049 yards, 19 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and he was sacked a career-high 51 times) were pretty bad and now he might not throw to Brown for at least one game and maybe more. I wouldn’t draft him (I know, drafts are almost all over) and I’d drop him if I did.
Tyrell Williams
The former Charger is known more as a deep threat than the kind of high-volume receiver Brown is, but maybe that changes more if Brown is out long-term. He’s worth a pickup, but I wouldn’t start him this week against the Broncos’ talented secondary.
Darren Waller
There’s been so much buzz about the 6-foot-6 tight end and he was already on my sleepers list for this week because Denver doesn’t defend against tight ends that well. Now? I’m super-intrigued both on Monday and long-term.
Hunter Renfrow
The guy who caught the national-championship-winning touchdown for Clemson in 2017 is now a rookie slot receiver for the Raiders, and this is a WR I’d take a flier on in deep leagues.
Josh Jacobs
If Brown is out for a while, I’m more nervous about defenses focusing on the first-round running back out of Alabama and stacking the box. But I also hoped that he would catch some passes out of the backfield despite the presence of Jalen Richard and his 68 catches last season. So I’d say it’s status quo here until we see how Jon Gruden uses the rookie.
