By Andrew Rovit ‘22, Sports Writer

Antonio Brown was a household name a couple of years ago. Many knew him as one of the NFL’s most decorated players or as the star wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers. During his time as a Steeler, he was elected to seven Pro Bowls and was on the First Team All Pro Team four times. He was widely known as one of the best players in the league, and he even received the highest annual salary by a wide receiver in NFL history. This, however, all changed by the 2018 season.

Throughout the 2018 season, Brown called out his teammates and coaches for poor performances and decisions during the game. Many Steeler players were not happy about his actions, especially when towards the end of the season, he violated the NFL’s social media policy by posting a video of Steelers coach, Mike Tomlin, speaking profanely about their upcoming opponent. Many were infuriated that he had once again violated the players’ and coaches’ trust. Needless to say, this caused an internal conflict between Brown and the Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, causing Brown to skip practices and sit out of the final game of the 2018 regular season. Finally, he met with management and formally demanded a trade and a fresh start for his career.

His wishes came true when the Pittsburgh Steelers traded him to the Oakland Raiders on March 13th, 2019, for picks in the 2019 draft. Many experts predicted the risk of his behaviour was worth it for the reward of his elite performance, yet they were wrong. During the off-season, Brown got horrendous frostbite on the bottom of his feet as a result of not wearing proper footwear in a cryotherapy chamber, and this caused him to miss most off-season practices. While recovering from his injury, he also filed a grievance with the NFL after his helmet was not approved under new safety regulations; this prompted him to threaten retirement if they did not change their regulations. After resolving the helmet issue, he posted on his social media account the letter he received from Raiders General Manager Mike Mayock regarding a fine that had been assessed to him for skipping mandatory team meetings. At practice the next day, Brown confronted Mayock and was restrained from physically assaulting him. The final straw was when the Raiders voided the guaranteed money on Brown’s contract without his consent leading to his release prior to the season commencing.

After his release, the New England Patriots signed Brown for a one-year contract. Brown’s time was short lived with the Patriots as he only played in one game before his release in mid September after sexual assault allegations arose from his former trainer. The NFL placed Brown on the Commissioner’s Exempt List, meaning that he cannot play for an NFL team until its investigation into the allegations concluded. Later, on January 23rd, 2020, he had an arrest warrant issued for charges of burglary and battery of a truck driver in his neighborhood. He later turned himself in and posted bail for a court date to be determined. 

The question now is what is next for Brown? During a press conference at the Super Bowl in early February, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said, “The first thing is, for all of us, to think about the well-being of Antonio.” Around the same time, Brown interviewed with ESPN analyst Josina Anderson and said, “I think I owe the whole NFL an apology for my past behavior.” Currently, he is trying to mend fractured relationships, but the real question is if there is a chance that he can get back into the NFL. Only time will tell.