Antonio Brown during his stint with the Pittsburgh Steelers in a game against the Washington Redskins from Sept. 12th, 2016.
By Bryce Lawson
One day after joining the New England Patriots, Antonio Brown had a lawsuit filed against him alleging he sexually assaulted his former trainer on three separate occasions.
As a lifelong fan of the Patriots, I was pretty disappointed to hear the news. This got me thinking: Should players be allowed to participate in games while facing investigation?
Brown is considered by many to be the best receiver in the NFL, whose issues with frostbitten feet and helmet regulations took over most of this year’s preseason headlines. After conflicts with Oakland Raiders general manager Mike Mayock the team had no choice but to release Brown.
In a conspiracy-like manner, the defending Super Bowl champion Patriots signed Brown to a one-year deal worth up to $15 million – peanuts considering what he brings on the field.
The Patriots intend to play Brown this season unless action is taken by the league. NFL commissioner Roger Godell has the power to put Brown on his player exempt list, banning him from all team-related activities while still getting paid by the team without costing a roster spot.
At this time, Antonio Brown has not been convicted of the charges, so if Brown is eligible to play, he should be on the field. Either way, the team is going to have to pay him, so they might as well use him. The Patriots are known for having a team-first attitude, so Brown is already on shaky ground.
Patrick Chung, a safety for the Patriots, is also under investigation for cocaine possession. So far, Chung has suited up in the first two regular season games without suspension from the league. He is a key player on the defense, so the only thing I could see keeping him off the field would be a conviction.
In most cases, the league does not suspend a player long-term until he’s been convicted of a crime. There are only a few cases in the history of the league where I can remember a player being in a scandal and not suiting up to play on Sunday — most notably, the Ray Rice incident from 2014. Rice was released from the Baltimore Ravens after a video came out of him abusing his fiancée.
It’s hard being a fan of a team always surrounded by scandal. From the ownership down, that takes away from the team’s accomplishments on the field, hurting the image of the team. For my team’s sake, I hope Brown’s off-the-field issues don’t hurt what could be the team’s record-breaking seventh Super Bowl title.
