Antonio Brown’s falling out with the Oakland Raiders is one of the wildest stories we’ve seen in sports in a long time. It feels like “roller coaster” or “soap opera” won’t cut it as a description, so maybe we should refer to the situation as a soap opera on a roller coaster.
Saturday brought the moment with the biggest on-the-field impact, as the Raiders ultimately released the wayward wide receiver and he later joined the New England Patriots. It’s a mess ... an entertaining, “grab your popcorn” mess, but a mess nonetheless.
Credit the Vancouver Canucks, then, for seizing the opportunity to promote themselves. They “invited” Antonio Brown to training camp with an adorably silly Photoshop, and the wide receiver “accepted it.” Social media can be fun, after all, and not just a place of seemingly unending dread and menace:
See you there 🤗🤗 https://t.co/FujlmP53Op
— AB (@AB84) September 7, 2019
The Canucks were wise not to Photoshop Brown in a hockey helmet, as we know how particular Brown is about his lids.
(Personally, I’m picturing Brown trying to find ways to MacGyver his old football helmet to try to fool the Canucks into thinking that it is appropriate NHL equipment.)
ESPN’s Emily Kaplan wonders if NHL players would be welcoming to Brown after cornerback Jalen Ramsey ruffled feathers a while back.
...if Antonio Brown actually wants to try out for the Canucks 🤔 https://t.co/ZkL4fB5ZME
— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) September 7, 2019
What position would Brown play? I’d put my money on roving defenseman: a talented free spirit who could nonetheless drive coaches mad when that free-spirited nature leads to mistakes.
(He might be a little skittish about ice, though.)
In all seriousness, we’re unlikely to see Brown at Canucks training camp. Then again, considering how bizarre some of the twists and turns of that saga ended up being, it would be foolish to assume that Brown isn’t capable of more surprises.
/Stocks up on even more popcorn.
MORE:
• ProHockeyTalk’s 2019 NHL free agency tracker
• Your 2019-20 NHL on NBC TV schedule
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.