Eleven days. That's how long the Antonio Brown-New England Patriots experiment lasted. Eleven days before the release of the mercurial, Hall of Fame talented, much-maligned drama-inducing wide receiver.
Is this the end?
Before asking that question, let's make a pro and con list of what Brown brings the table.
Cons:
Three teams in seven months. He forced himself out of of the Pittsburgh Steelers; then the Oakland Raiders found the Patriots didn't want him much longer. That's a stain on a resume.
Ongoing sexual assault and rape case; then, further allegations took place.
The offseason, not including releases, that includes: frostbitten feet, threatening to retire due to a helmet, multiple lawsuits filed against him, fighting with the Raiders general manager Mike Mayock, earning more fines than money in Oakland and the never-ending social media antics.
Money. Antonio Brown likes that. He wants to get paid no matter what. Too bad Vicis and Nike ended endorsement deals with him.
Has been, on many instances, called clinically insane from multiple different sectors of the sports world.
If the Patriots don't want him, who does?
Pros:
He's very good at football. See: seven-time Pro Bowler, four-time first-team All-Pro, two-time NFL receiving yards and receptions leader and 2018 NFL touchdown leader.
That's about it in the pro section.
As you can see, there are many cons to Brown, and perhaps should be more listed. However, there is one pro that may outweigh all the cons: he's an outstanding football player. In fact, so good, that despite all of his antics and 2019 offseason, he is still probably a Hall of Famer.
Does anybody want that very good football player with a long list of things going against him?
As of September 20th, yes, but his market is likely drying up. Will anybody sign him right after his release? Doubtful. The NFL and authorities are looking into serious sexual assault and rape allegations on the receiver. Until that gets cleared up, it's doubtful a team will sign him considering that without the allegations he's still a risk.
Some teams would benefit from Brown's on the field play. In fact, every team would. He's an elite wide receiver and a generational talent capable of slicing and dicing everything a defensive coordinator throws at him. However, with the NFL looking into a cloudy past, it's going to take any team some convincing to sign him.
Then there is Brown himself. Would he sign with any team? He didn't want to go to Buffalo when rumors leaked a trade there, would he want to do it if they call back? Does he want to go to a contender? Would a contender sign him?
Ultimately, Brown is an enigma. It's like trying to think what your dog or cat is thinking. Nobody knows. He may retire. He may settle each and every lawsuit that comes his way. He may publicly forgive everybody. He may sign with a team. Or he may just end up being the same old Antonio Brown that caused more headache than joy for any organization he called his during the 2019 calendar year.
Final verdict: with Antonio Brown, nobody knows.
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