Raiders rookies could benefit from Antonio Brown drama

The developing drama around Antonio Brown is casting a shadow over the Raiders’ preparations for the new season, but their rookies could benefit from it.

After grabbing the headlines for much of the offseason, Antonio Brown has quickly become the story of the preseason, with the gamble the Oakland Raiders took in trading for him seemingly now at risk of backfiring.

Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, Brown is threatening to quit the NFL over changes to regulations preventing him from wearing the helmet he was worn throughout his career.

Brown has also missed all but two days of training camp due to injuries to his feet suffered by wearing incorrect footwear when using a cryotherapy chamber and, though it is unclear how serious Brown is with his threat of retirement, the Raiders now appear in danger of getting absolutely nothing back on their investment.

The developing saga around Brown is casting a shadow over their preparations for the franchise’s final season in Oakland. Losing a player of his incredible talents before his Raiders career has even started would be dreadful for the organization, but for Oakland’s offensive rookies his departure could provide a significant boost in terms of their playing time.

Hunter Renfrow has already moved into the starting role in the slot and will be a featured player on the offense regardless of whether Brown is on the field. However, with Brown absent an even greater amount of targets seems inevitable for the former Clemson Tiger, who will be playing with a quarterback in Derek Carr who favored underneath throws in 2018, posting an average depth of target of 7.1 yards.

Foster Moreau could also see a bump in his amount of playing time if the Raiders are minus Brown and elect to go with more two-tight end sets, while undrafted free agent Keelan Doss will have a much better chance of making the roster should Brown remain away from the team.

First-round running back Josh Jacobs was already poised to be a huge part of the passing game, but Carr may be tempted to check it down to the former Alabama star more often if Brown, unquestionably his best downfield weapon, does not return.

For now, this is all hypothetical but, given Brown’s recent history, it is worthy of discussion. No Raiders fan wants to hear about silver linings to a possible early end to Brown’s time with Oakland but, for a young team building towards what they hope will be a bright future in Las Vegas, rookies getting more snaps and targets as a result of this saga is at least something to take solace in.