Antonio Brown missed the first day of Raiders OTAs, and it does not matter
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders biggest addition, Antonio Brown, was absent from OTAs on Tuesday, and here is why it does matter in the slightest.
The Oakland Raiders made a bunch of significant upgrades to their roster this offseason, but none was bigger than the trade they made for Antonio Brown. The Pittsburgh Steelers orginially wanted a king’s ransom for Brown, which started at two first round draft picks, but Mike Mayock was able to get the elite wideout for a third and fifth round pick.
With Brown at the top of the depth chart at wide receiver, this Raiders roster of skill position players gets a major upgrade. For the last six seasons, Brown has hauled in at least 100 catches, and he now enters an offense led by one of the better offensive-minded head coaches in the NFL in Jon Gruden.
Not only did Oakland bring in Brown at wide receiver, but they also added talent behind him in guys like Tyrell Williams, J.J. Nelson, Ryan Grant, and Hunter Renfrow. This is a position group that will be one of the more improved in the NFL this season, and they showed their skills during the first day of OTAs on Tuesday.
However, Brown was not on the field with his teammates on Day One, and while that may have made for a big news story, it really is not a big deal. Brown is the kind of guy who is going to be there for all the mandatory stuff for the Raiders, but he is working out on his own, which is likely a harder workout than he would have gotten with his teammates on Tuesday.
Looking around the NFL, there were plenty of big name guys who missed the first day of OTAs, including Stefon Diggs, an elite wideout for the Minnesota Vikings. In addition to Brown and Diggs, Atlanta Falcons star Julio Jones also missed Day One, so do not make a huge deal out of this.
Of course, with a new team, fans would have liked to see AB out there with his new teammates, but you have to believe he was working somewhere.
Next. Maurice Hurst could be a Pro Bowler in Year 2. dark
Brown is as good as it gets when it comes to the wide receiver position in the NFL, so for him to miss the first day of a voluntary OTA does not matter in the slightest. He has worked out diligently since putting on the Silver and Black, already developing a rapport with Carr, and he should once again be a 100-catch guy in 2019.