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Antonio Brown unhappy over new fine, posts YouTube video of apparent Jon Gruden call

And here you thought that the Antonio Brown story would calm down once the Oakland Raiders said he could play in Week 1.

Not with this saga. The latest turn comes from Ed Werder of ESPN, who reported that the Raiders fined Brown for the argument he had with general manager Mike Mayock during Wednesday’s practice. The Raiders leaked they were considering suspending Brown over the incident, but never followed through with that after he apologized.

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Brown isn’t happy with the latest fine according to a source, Werder said. That should sound familiar. And then came a new YouTube video from Brown.

Antonio Brown’s new YouTube video

Brown posting a YouTube video of an apparent phone conversation with Jon Gruden is curiously timed, to say the least. It came not too long after the Raiders announced he’d play on Monday night against the Broncos.

In the video posted Friday night, Brown is apparently having a phone conversation with Gruden which was taped (California law requires both parties’ consent to record phone calls). There’s no way of knowing if it’s Gruden or where and when the conversation took place, but in the video the person who sounds exactly like Gruden asks Brown if he wants to be a Raider, and Brown replies he has been trying to be a Raider since “day one.” Brown then asks Gruden if the Raiders want him.

“Please stop this s—- and just play football. How hard is that?” Gruden said on the video. “You’re a great football player. Just play football.”

Here’s the video, posted to Antonio Brown’s verified YouTube page (be warned, it has explicit language):

Remember the controversy that came from Brown broadcasting on Facebook Live from the Steelers locker room? Most NFL teams don’t like private conversations publicized. But Gruden reportedly is fine with it.

Of course.

Brown: ‘Free me!’

Here was the caption to the video on YouTube:

“With all these false narratives antagonizing me, it’s time for me to control my own narrative. Show the world I’m not the bad guy. Show the world you can free yourself from the lies and become your own person. I am not just AB the football player, I am Antonio Brown, the person, who paved a way for himself to be in charge of his own life. Free me!”

The Raiders have already let Brown slide with everything else, so why not post a video of an apparent phone conversation with the coach? The Steelers made mistakes enabling Brown, and the Raiders are voluntarily headed down the same path.

In a little more than a month, Brown has created more drama than most NFL players do in a lifetime. It’s probably best to assume there’s more to come.

GLENDALE, AZ - AUGUST 15:  Oakland Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) smiles before the NFL preseason football game between the Oakland Raiders and the Arizona Cardinals on August 15, 2019 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ - AUGUST 15: Oakland Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) smiles before the NFL preseason football game between the Oakland Raiders and the Arizona Cardinals on August 15, 2019 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab

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