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Next week’s episode of “Hard Knocks” is going to be really good.
Earlier today it was reported that Antonio Brown filed a grievance with the NFL so that he could wear his old helmet that is currently in violation of the league’s helmet rule policy.
Via ESPN
Oakland Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown has filed a grievance against the NFL to be allowed to wear the helmet he prefers, not one of the helmets that league rules mandate, league sources told ESPN on Friday.
Brown is expected to have a hearing about the helmet as early as next week, and an arbitrator will decide whether he gets to wear the one he wants.
Long-standing NFL rules requiring players to wear certified helmets say he can’t. The helmet that Brown is comfortable in and has worn throughout his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers — believed to be the Schutt Air Advantage helmet, which the company has discontinued making — is no longer certified by the National Operating Committee for Standards and Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE).
Not only has Brown threatened to retire to but Michael Silver is reporting that he’s driving his teammates and coaches crazy over the helmet issue.
2) Brown’s vocal resistance to the mandate, both during OTAs and shortly after his arrival in Napa, Calif. for training camp, has contributed to a disconnect with the team that acquired the seven-time Pro Bowl selection via a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers last March…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
4) Brown initially left to seek an additional medical opinion on his frostbitten feet. Before leaving, Brown pushed back for a third time against the league’s prohibition of the helmet model he has worn for his entire nine-year career…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
6) The pushback began in May, when the receiver was informed by the Raiders that the NFL had officially eliminated the one-year grace period for certain helmet models, including the one worn by Brown, which had fallen short in laboratory testing for head-impact severity…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
8) On a conference call with reporters earlier this spring, Jeff Miller, the NFL’s exec VP of health & safety initiatives, said that any team found to have known about a player wearing a banned helmet or to have facilitated the use of one would be subject to league discipline…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
10) When he showed up for the 1st OTA, however, Brown requested his old helmet. After being told he’d have to wear an approved model, witnesses say, the WR loudly voiced his displeasure, complaining QBs such as Brady and Rodgers were not being subjected to the same scrutiny…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
12) The following day, Brown showed up in Alameda and acted like nothing had happened, accepting the new helmet from an equipment manager without protest and completing the workout…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
14) He was told the helmet was not allowed, and once again, he acquiesced and wore the new model. Before Brown arrived at training camp last month, coaches and teammates believed the issue had been resolved…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
16) “He’s still freaking out about it,” said one Raiders player. “He hasn’t been here for awhile, and no one knows where he’s at.” …
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
18) Since joining the Raiders, Brown has frustrated his new bosses by showing up late to numerous meetings and by often appearing unfocused in them…
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019
20) Still, according to one source, “the meeting thing isn’t that bad… but the feet, helmet and going dark is an issue.”
(END)— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) August 9, 2019