The Loop
Antonio Brown is now asking his Twitter followers for the helmet he needs. What is going on?
Icon Sportswire
Just when it looked like the Antonio Brown helmet saga had reached its end, the wide receiver added another chapter to this odd story on Tuesday, and it's easily the strangest one yet.
On Monday, Brown's grievance to wear his old helmet was officially denied by an arbitrator, forcing him to decide if he wanted to continue to sit out or play, but with a new helmet that he doesn't want to wear. Fortunately for the Raiders, Brown came to his senses and announced he'd rejoin the team, though he's still recovering from the frostbite on his feet he got from cryotherapy. When those heal up, and he gets used to his new helmet, Brown and the Raiders can put this whole mess behind them.
Just kidding! Brown is intent dragging this sob story out, as the wideout took to Twitter on Tuesday to ask his followers if they have a conforming version of his old helmet that he can trade for. No, we're not making this up:
The arbitrator denied Brown's grievance because the helmet in question was made before 2010. The NFL would approve the same helmet model provided it was made after 2010 and in good condition. Schutt stopped making the AiR Advantage in 2011, meaning it's possible that a conforming version within the 10-year limit is out there. So Brown is shooting his shot by asking his Twitter followers if they have one lying around. What a time to be alive.
The funniest part of the tweet is the quotes around it, which could lead one to surmise that this statement was crafted by someone in Brown's camp, and Brown simply copy and pasted it with the quotes around it. He wants the helmet, but not badly enough to proofread his tweets for it. Reminiscent of Desean Jackson's famous "Chillin at the Nokia Pre Party" tweet from the 2012 ESPY's.
As odd as this move is, it could result in Brown finding the helmet he needs. The power of social media is strong, and we're sure there's a former high school or college football player out there, who is also a diehard Raiders fan, that has a Schutt AiR Advantage mounted in their trophy room. If so, I'd advise asking for way more than a signed Raiders helmet. Ask for $1 million and find out just how badly AB wants this thing.