Source: Icon Sportswire / Getty
The Antonio Brown experiment with the Oakland Raiders is off to a rocky start. Reports surfaced that Brown’s foot injury that has kept out of training camp was due to suffering from extreme frostbite. Now, ESPN NFL Insider, Adam Schefter is reporting that the wideout is threatening not to play if he can’t use his old helmet.
Schefter reports that Brown had a two-hour conference call with league officials on Friday to make his care for the NFL to allow him to wear the 10-year-old helmet. Brown argues that the league-mandated helmet “protrudes out interferes with his vision as he tries to catch the football” Schefter reports.
The Raiders have reportedly sent their star wide receiver approved helmets he can wear, but he did not like any of them. Schefter’s report even hints at Brown’s absence from training camp has more to do with the helmet issue than his foot injury.
The Schutt Air Advantage helmet Brown is fighting so hard to continue rocking on the field has been discontinued by the company. The National Operating Committee for Standards and Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE) no longer certifies the helmet.
The NFL has a long-standing policy of not allowing helmets on the field certified by NOCSAE. The committee also has a rule that helmets older than 10 years can no longer be worn.
In a statement, the Raiders stuck by Brown stating the organization is “aware and supportive of Antonio Brown but [have] no further comment.”
By the end of last season, 32 players were wearing banned helmets the NFL revealed. Brown as well as New England Patriots quarterback, Tom Brady were two of those players. Brady’s displeasure for the rule is well known.
The jokes are already pouring in about the helmet situation with many saying the Raiders might be having buyers remorse.
https://twitter.com/KFCradio/status/1159926998724222978?s=20
https://twitter.com/LV_Visuals/status/1159927409111527424?s=20
Antonio Brown doesn’t seem to be worried though, hell his latest Instagram post hints at him having no remorse leaving the game at this point.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B09BnpLhqvL/
We are sure this will all play out on HBO’s Hard Knocks.
Photo: Icon Sportswire / Getty
Antonio Brown Threatens Not To Play This Season If He Cant Use His Old Helmet was originally published on cassiuslife.com
