After a series of wild twists and turns in the Antonio Brown saga, the Oakland Raiders may be parting ways with the superstar wide receiver after all.
On Friday, Brown apologized to his teammates following a reported altercation with general manager Mike Mayock earlier in the week. It had been reported that the Raiders planned to suspend Brown, which would put his remaining $29 million in guaranteed money at risk, but Jon Gruden made the surprising announcement that he planned to play Brown Week 1.
A few hours later, ESPN reported that the Raiders were levying another fine on Brown. The same night, Brown released a strange video on his YouTube account, which featured a recorded conversation between Brown and Jon Gruden.
The uneasy alliance between Brown and the Raiders lasted just a few hours, evidently. On Saturday morning, Brown asked for his release in a post on Instagram.
“And that’s fine ! I have worked my whole life to prove that the system is blind to see talent like mines. Now that everyone sees it, they want me to conform to that same system that has failed me all those years. “I’m not mad at anyone. I’m just asking for the freedom to prove them all wrong.” Release me @raiders #NOMore #theyputblindersonahorseforareason #NoMoreFake”
Why would Brown suddenly want out? The Raiders’ latest fine was for “conduct detrimental to the team,” according to Adam Schefter, which has voided the remaining $29.1 million in guaranteed money in Brown’s contract. Brown could still play and earn $14.6 million in salary this season, but the Raiders could cut him at any time.
UPDATE: The Raiders have released Brown.
The Raiders are not yet entirely in the clear, though,
