Antonio Brown Soap Opera Continues With Patriots Release

If you thought the NFL’s greatest offseason drama had finally come to an end, you thought wrong. The Antonio Brown soap opera continues to baffle everyone, and his saga added another chapter today when he took to Twitter to indicate that he had been released by the New England Patriots. Brown had only been a Patriot for two weeks before being cut, and serious allegations of misconduct led to New England releasing the troubled wide receiver.

With Brown currently on the waiver wire, BetOnline has posted props on whether or not he will play again in 2019 and if he will be on a team’s roster for Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season.

WILL ANTONIO BROWN PLAY ANOTHER DOWN OF FOOTBALL IN THE 2019 NFL REGULAR SEASON?

YES      +200   
NO       -300   

WILL ANTONIO BROWN BE ON A ROSTER FOR GAME 1 OF THE 2020 NFL REGULAR SEASON?

YES      +140    
NO       -180  

Antonio Brown has yet to be placed on the Commissioner-Exempt list, so any other team in the league is free to sign the wide receiver. Brown is currently being investigated by the NFL after his former trainer filed a civil lawsuit against him, alleging that Brown sexually assaulted her on two separate occasions.

Her lawsuit was filed the day after Brown signed his contract with the New England Patriots, and the Patriots didn’t release him because they believed it would set a bad precedent. However, as further allegations were reported by Sports Illustrated earlier in the week, the team reexamined its position and decided to release Brown after it was reported that he had sent threatening text messages to multiple accusers.

At this point, no team is likely to sign Brown until the NFL finishes its investigation. The league met with Brown’s former trainer on Monday of this week, and ESPN reports that the NFL plans to meet with Taylor again as it continues its investigation into the matter.

The NFL also plans on meeting with an artist that accused Brown of sexual misconduct in the SI piece. Her lawyer contacted the NFL yesterday to tell the league about the text messages that Brown had sent his client, and the league promised to look into the matter to see whether or not his actions violated the league’s Personal Conduct Policy.

As talented as Brown is, it’s unlikely that any team will step up to take what would be a massive PR hit. New England caught some flak for signing Brown two weeks ago, but that was before multiple allegations of sexual assault came to light. Any team that signed him this season would immediately put themselves in the crosshairs of fans and media outlets alike.

For an indication of what might happen going forward, look at the cases of Ray Rice and Kareem Hunt. Rice was released outright by the Baltimore Ravens after video of the running back striking a woman was released by TMZ. He never played in the NFL again following the incident.

Hunt’s case is more recent. The Kansas City Chiefs released Hunt in the middle of the season after video from an incident earlier in the year surfaced. He did not sign with another team the rest of the season, but he did agree to terms with the Cleveland Browns this offseason. Hunt was ineligible to play in Week 1 due to a league-mandated suspension though.

With those recent examples in mind, the ‘No’ option on both bets looks like the right call. Those are the favored sides per the NFL betting odds, and they are the correct ones to make.

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