Antonio Brown's Agent Says WR Ready To 'Make It Work' With Patriots
The agent for wide receiver Antonio Brown says the newest member of the New England Patriots is ready to embrace the culture of the six-time Super Bowl champion and knows what is expected of him.
Brown orchestrated his exit from the Oakland Raiders in stunning fashion this week, from posting a letter notifying him of his fines for skipping practices, to later apologizing for his behavior for confronting general manager Mike Mayock to asking for his release early Saturday morning.
The Raiders did just that, voiding his contract that prevented Brown from making at least $30 million in guarantees.
Hours later, Brown found a new home with the Patriots. He will not play in Sunday's game against his old team, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Schefter reports that New England tried make a deal with Pittsburgh for Brown in March, but Pittsburgh nixed the deal as to not trade him to a conference rival.
“I’ll just tell you that the Patriots are obviously a very solid, strong organization,” agent Drew Rosenhaus said on ESPN. “They do things the Patriots Way. They expect everyone to be accountable. They don’t make any exceptions. I’ve discussed this with Antonio. And he wants to be a Patriot. He’s prepared to go there, fit in, work hard, be like every other player on the team, do what’s asked of him, do his job and make it work. He’s honored with the opportunity and he’s looking forward to taking advantage of it.”
Rosenhaus said the deal includes a $9 million signing bonus and another $5 million in incentives.
"Antonio had a robust free-agent market and certainly had a lot of options," Rosenhaus said. "But it was hard to compete with New England and that amazing opportunity, that great franchise, and play with one of the all-time greats, Tom Brady, and Bill Belichick."
Brown had 104 catches for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns last season for the Steelers.
