Report: Antonio Brown to file record 9 grievances and appeals, attempt to recoup $61 million in guarantees
Antonio Brown is setting records — just not the type that he (or anyone else) thought he’d be setting four weeks into the season.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Brown is set to file nine grievances and appeals with the NFL, which is a record. A source told Schefter that no player has ever filed that many grievances and appeals at one time. A record is a record, right?
After a disastrous month professionally, Brown is filing those grievances in an attempt to recoup some of the $61 million he was guaranteed, and still feels that he’s owed, by the various teams he’s played for.
The itemized list of money and teams that Schefter published is essentially a tour through Brown’s last month. He’s seeking over $31 million from the Oakland Raiders, which includes his $29 million salary guarantee, $1 million signing bonus, his unpaid Week 1 salary, and he’s appealing the $215,000 in fines from the Raiders. He’s also seeking over $30 million from the New England Patriots. That figure includes his $1 million 2019 salary, $9 million signing bonus (which the Patriots have already not paid), his unpaid $64,000 salary from Week 3, and the guaranteed $20 million option year salary for 2020.
It’s not clear which way these appeals might go. Brown himself caused the issues that led to him being released from those contracts (not to mention the fines he racked up in Oakland over the helmet issue), but guarantees are guarantees, behavior issues or not. While Brown may not be successful in recouping all of the $61-plus million he feels he’s owed, Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson recently reported that Brown is likely to win at least the signing bonus grievance against the Patriots, as they cut him before he did anything to void the contract. As for the rest of the grievances and appeals, it’s shaping up to be a heckuva fight.
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