Odds Say Antonio Brown Won’t Be on an NFL Roster to Start 2020 NFL Season
- There are rumors swirling that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are interested in Antonio Brown despite being arrested for felony burglary in January
- Brown was cut by both the Las Vegas Raiders and the New England Patriots last season, playing in just one game while swirling through a multitude of off-field issues
- See the odds on whether AB will be on an NFL team for the upcoming season within the story below
There have been whispers in NFL circles that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are looking to sign Antonio Brown. The talented wideout has been marred by off-field issues and only appeared in one game last season.
Will the Bucs – or anyone else – deem him worth the risk? There is a prop being offered on whether or not he’ll be on an NFL roster in Week 1, so let’s take a closer look.
Odds Antonio Brown Is on a Roster to Start the 2020 NFL Regular Season?
| Outcome | Odds |
|---|---|
| Yes | +100 |
| No | -140 |
Odds taken June 30th
Brown’s Shenanigans Started About a Year Ago
It’s been a wild couple of years for Brown, the player who led the NFL in receiving yards in 2017. He had a fairly productive year in 2018 but the off-field concerns started to come to light when he essentially quit on the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 17 of that season – leading to his trade to the Raiders.
While many thought that the Raiders were getting a steal of a deal at the time, Brown never actually played a game for them. First, he showed up to training camp in a hot air balloon and then refused to practice unless he could use a specific helmet that the league was banning.
That proved to be the tip of the iceberg as Brown clashed with teammates and management and was then cut outright.
Brown signed on with the New England Patriots but that deal didn’t last long, (he played one game) as allegations of sexual and personal misconduct came to light.
When more allegations came up, the Patriots released Brown. Since then, there has been even more drama with his conduct live streaming on Instagram, including clashes with police and the mother of his kids. He was also charged with burglary in January of 2020.
Bucs Allegedly Interested
While Brown clearly has a ton of baggage, the reality is that he played nearly nine seasons without any problems of the sort. He’s going to have to go through 13-week anger management, a psychological evaluation and do 100 hours of community service. If he gets through that, maybe he returns to being the player of old.
Tampa Bay is interested because they know just how big of an asset he can be on the field. The Bucs offense has gone from good to great as they’ve added Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, Tristan Wirfs and Ke’Shawn Vaughn, and they can potentially reach elite status if Brown returns and is a model citizen.
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) June 30, 2020
The crux of it is that the Bucs already know they’re in contention to be one of the best teams in the NFC; a guy like Brown could make them the favorite.
With strong personalities like head coach Bruce Arians and Brady, they might feel like they can keep Brown in line.
What’s the Best Bet?
I would actually bet on Brown being on a roster to start the 2020 regular season. When you think about it from the Bucs perspective, why not? Sure, Brown might endure a suspension from the league, but what’s the downside of taking a shot on the former All-Pro?
If they sign him to a team-friendly deal and he’s a headache, they can suspend him themselves (so that no other team can have access to him) or cut him loose. On the other hand, if he works out, the Bucs offense – at least talent-wise – will have potential to be one of the NFL’s best.
Arians did say in March that the team wasn’t interested in Brown, citing the fact he wasn’t a good fit. That was the right thing to say at the time, though, as Brown had just been arrested. Now that some time has passed and Brady has pushed to bring him back, it seems like Arians’ stance has softened.
Where there is smoke, there is fire. With NFL insiders like Michael Lombardi indicating that the Bucs are interested in Brown, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made a move to sign him and give him another shot in the NFL.
For over 15 years, Dave has been working in mainstream media and sports betting. He hosted a station on Sirius Satellite Radio for four years, and is currently a senior writer for AskMen. He's interviewed hundreds of hundreds of high-profile sports stars like Shaquille O'Neal and Floyd Mayweather.
