Antonio Brown - Alive & Well in TB?

[Ice]

I 100% think the Pats should have sat him. He's still getting paid

that looks like a contradiction.

Not at all. I was just referencing to the people who seem to think it'd be some great injustice for him to be put on the list. I'm pretty sure he still gets paid while still being on it, and we all know that's one of his main concerns.

A couple of points.

1) The player does get paid while on the exempt list.

2) Why he should not be on that list is a function of precedent; This is a civil matter, not a criminal matter. Imagine the week before the Superbowl someone levels a charge against Brady as an example. There is no police report, there is only someone leveling a charge out of the blue in an attempt to get him off the team for a big game.

If a precedent like Brown's situation resulted in placement to an exempt list with absolutely zero investigation or proof that is dangerous. We have seen instances of massive overreaction from the Duke lacrosse team or even the recent Supreme Court Justice of claims that were just not based in reality.

Even for the NFL that is a step to far. Now once investigated, the NFL could come down on him like a ton of bricks but waiting until information is gathered to ultimately make a determination is the wise course of action.

In the end, this is a civil issue in this case, whereby an individual is not claiming criminal behavior but seeking money from an individual for his conduct. Brown has rights, no matter what any of us actually think of him. In this case the NFL should stay away and not get involved in a private matter even though it's in the public arena IMO.

[blemly]

Have we entered the 57th brief sell window for AB? He went for Mike Williams and a 2020 mid-late 1st in one of my leagues yesterday. If I am an owner I am probably not selling at that price.

huh? Id say that is a nice offer. We do play dynasty right? AB is 31 I think. MW is what 24? C'mon man. With what is going on with AB, what are you expecting?

Maybe I am just not as much of a Mike Williams fan as others. I think the talent gap between he and AB is pretty wide. But I also think AB has the type of game to last for another 3-4 years.

Edit: I am certainly aware of the legal concerns with AB. But I will be a lot more worried if there are hints of it becoming anything more than a civil lawsuit. I guess I am just not as concerned about AB's legal issues right now. Time will tell if that was incorrect or not.

[Kaz]

that looks like a contradiction.

Not at all. I was just referencing to the people who seem to think it'd be some great injustice for him to be put on the list. I'm pretty sure he still gets paid while still being on it, and we all know that's one of his main concerns.

A couple of points.

1) The player does get paid while on the exempt list.

2) Why he should not be on that list is a function of precedent; This is a civil matter, not a criminal matter. Imagine the week before the Superbowl someone levels a charge against Brady as an example. There is no police report, there is only someone leveling a charge out of the blue in an attempt to get him off the team for a big game.

If a precedent like Brown's situation resulted in placement to an exempt list with absolutely zero investigation or proof that is dangerous. We have seen instances of massive overreaction from the Duke lacrosse team or even the recent Supreme Court Justice of claims that were just not based in reality.

Even for the NFL that is a step to far. Now once investigated, the NFL could come down on him like a ton of bricks but waiting until information is gathered to ultimately make a determination is the wise course of action.

In the end, this is a civil issue in this case, whereby an individual is not claiming criminal behavior but seeking money from an individual for his conduct. Brown has rights, no matter what any of us actually think of him. In this case the NFL should stay away and not get involved in a private matter even though it's in the public arena IMO.

To answer your points, I clearly said that I don't think he should be on the exempt list at this point. I was simply responding to people who were acting like it is the end of the world if he is put on it. I feel there needs to be some form of clear evidence before the league takes action in cases like this. I don't really care if it is civil vs criminal as long as a reasonable amount of guilt can be drawn from the evidence at hand. I feel like the text conversations where Brown incriminates himself, should they exist, are enough to warrant this. The recent cases against the Supreme Court justices are irrelevant to this scenario, as there was no hard proof, as there is here. Furthermore, I don't think the league should be bound by the inclinations of the justice systems as per serious offenses like rape. As previous posters have said, prosecution can decline to press forward with cases when they feel it isn't a slam dunk case or there is some degree of question. Does that mean that the person in question isn't A. a scumbag or B. damaging the integrity of the league shield?

I do think the Patriots should have sat him personally until we got more clarification on the matter. It just looks bad to have him out there when such a serious allegation has been levied against him, especially considering the kind of charges that Kraft has had brought against him. Also, it sends a message that the Patriots won't deal with players lying to them, as AB apparently never brought this up despite the issue having been ongoing for months.

[Titans95]

If those emails can be verified as accurate then doesn't that immediately make him guilty of at least one sexual assault? That alone should be enough for a massive suspension not to mention it gives more validity to her other more serious accusations which the NFL could use against Brown.

[steelman]

Not a fan of AB the human but I am a fan of innocent until proven guilty.

Accused doesn't mean his livelihood should be destroyed. None of this is in the criminal courts at this point which when happened, if it did, should have been. Coming back years later for money in a civil case becomes an issue between two parties.

Time will tell but until then he has as much right to work as the accuser does in cases like this.

Innocent until proven guilty is between you and the government, not your employer or the rest of society. There's no such thing as a right to work, nevermind a right to play in the NFL. If the NFL decides he's creating too much bad press, they could suspend him, regardless of his guilt. Almost every employer has some vague "conduct detrimental" clause they can use to suspend/terminate employment.

Not that I expect that to happen, but as we've seen in the past, the NFL does whatever it wants.

[whodunnit]

The real deal breaker :

https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/09 ... 11500/amp/

[Mike from Canada]

Maybe I'm too pessimistic but I don't like his chances at getting the NFL man of the year award.

[blemly]

Furthermore, I don't think the league should be bound by the inclinations of the justice systems as per serious offenses like rape.

This is outright ludicrous. The snowball effect of this could lead to planned attacks on star players before big games. The NFL has leniency to pursue stuff to an extent, but de facto suspicions for more serious allegations is absurd.

[Kaz]

Furthermore, I don't think the league should be bound by the inclinations of the justice systems as per serious offenses like rape.

This is outright ludicrous. The snowball effect of this could lead to planned attacks on star players before big games. The NFL has leniency to pursue stuff to an extent, but de facto suspicions for more serious allegations is absurd.

Good job picking a single sentence out of my statement? I said that I have no problem with the NFL proceeding in cases where they have a reasonable amount of evidence. I consider the text messages, if proven valid, to be a reasonable amount. That does not mean I support them benching players based on allegations alone.

[bjd5211]

He won't be facing legal charges, statute of limitations has expired.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/276 ... ue-statute

[blemly]

He won't be facing legal charges, statute of limitations has expired.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/276 ... ue-statute

IMPORTANT CONTEXT: On the two lesser allegations. The alleged rape in Miami from 2018, however, does not have any SOL issues.

If you want to spin this to your leaguemates and they buy it, go right ahead. It is a positive sign for AB, but he isn't completely in the clear yet.

[notweswelker]

The real deal breaker :

https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2019/09 ... 11500/amp/

I mean this not to make light of anyone, or him, but after seeing his behavior and reading/hearing what he has said the past few years
I think he may be mentally challenged.

[Ice]

Not a fan of AB the human but I am a fan of innocent until proven guilty.

Accused doesn't mean his livelihood should be destroyed. None of this is in the criminal courts at this point which when happened, if it did, should have been. Coming back years later for money in a civil case becomes an issue between two parties.

Time will tell but until then he has as much right to work as the accuser does in cases like this.

Innocent until proven guilty is between you and the government, not your employer or the rest of society. There's no such thing as a right to work, nevermind a right to play in the NFL. If the NFL decides he's creating too much bad press, they could suspend him, regardless of his guilt. Almost every employer has some vague "conduct detrimental" clause they can use to suspend/terminate employment.

Not that I expect that to happen, but as we've seen in the past, the NFL does whatever it wants.

The last player with arguably far worse guilt by association which included criminal investigations was T. Hill. The NFL let that play out.

What some fail to realize is the NFL shield is not bullet proof. See Kaep.

If they start sitting players just because some person makes a civil claim they better be right.

My guess is the NFL is being cautious, as they should be, given they are not the only ones with lawyers.

Why risk a massive suit by Brown if they start making decisions without any evidence that could negatively impact him.

The league has time and now has interviewed the accuser. Figure the league to make a decision at some point one way or another.

No rush to judgement is a smarter course of action given the risk of unintended consequences.

[jman3134]

Nike and Helmet companies drop AB. Suspension looming? Sell sell sell

[notweswelker]

Nike and Helmet companies drop AB. Suspension looming? Sell sell sell

If you haven't sold on AB yet, you deserve all the face farts he is going to send your way.