This might be the start of a new idea around here. With all the ‘fake news’ swirling the interwebs, it seems like a nice idea every once in a while to debunk some of the television talkers who get paid to have a strong opinion on matters you know they don’t really care about.
First up is Jason Whitlock.
His three-minute rant on the Raiders can be viewed below, but to save you a click, his strongest statement is below…
Whitlock: The biggest red flag Gruden ignored [in trading for Brown] was the Steelers willingness to trade the NFL’s most productive receiver for a third-round pick…
How quickly we forget that Brown forced the Steelers hand on the trade. He wanted out of Pittsburgh and he understood that his big contract gave him leverage out of Pittsburgh if he could prove to the team that keeping him was only going to make matters worse. Remember, the Steelers wanted a first-round pick for AB, but eventually agreed to take a high second-round pick from the Bills before Brown nixed the trade by saying he wouldn’t play for Buffalo.
AB stole almost every ounce of leverage the Steelers had over the course of the trade negotiation process. He basically chose where he was going to be traded and by eliminating interested trade partners he was able to drop his trade value.
Whitlock and others have criticized Brown for threatening to retire, but once again it’s important to understand why he might resort to such a threat.
Had he retired in Pittsburgh, the Steelers only compensation for Brown would have been a mountain of dead money against their salary cap. In the case of the Raiders last week, there are conflicting reports on whether he actually threatened to retire (the Raiders have privately denied it), but it’s worth noting that the organization never believed he was considering retirement.
Brown will reportedly return to the Raiders on Tuesday and look for him to soon be practicing in the helmet model he was angling to wear from the start.
Speak For Yourself on Twitter
Today’s #Whitlogue: Dumb, dumber & Gruden: Raiders head coach looks the worst in AB saga. @WhitlockJason https://t.co/Fe48XsGOXG
twitter: @raidersbeat
Jason how many teams have you played for and how much cheese have you eaten with all your whine. AB is a mouth for sure and if anyone should respect his mouth you should. AB will be on the line for the first game and when he scores two TD’s that day please let there be crickets from you. Respectfully
I agree the Raiders (Gruden) have not done anything great or even anything deserving of appreciation. Gruden traded away Mack 1 of the best to ever play. They could have signed Mack 4 less than what Bears gave n not much more than ridiculous amount they paid 4 Brown. The Mack fiasco n handling of last year caused Raiders 2 become a team players will go 2 only if money is guaranteed (i.e., AB, Brown, Williams, n Joyner). Gruden had a ton of money 2 spend n draft picks 2 use so there is nothing Gruden can do that removes the mistakes he has continued 2 make. Raiders did not need AB as they could have kept Cook n picked up receivers elsewhere still getting Williams. They did not need over paid n at best average lineman in Brown but again Gruden probably believed he needed 2 make big splash after showing his true football intelligence last season
Mack turned down Raiders offer of “a little less”. He didn’t want to play for the Raiders, as much as we’d love to still have him. Brown wants to be a Raider and he signed for cheap relative to his worth. Seasons almost here, I guess we’ll see!