Oakland Raiders: Antonio Brown might get his way after all…or will he?

The great helmet debate is afoot and, although one for the dramatic, Oakland Raiders wideout Antonio Brown might have a legitimate gripe with the league concerning its helmet policy.

Oakland Raiders wide receiver Antonio Brown has been at the center of attention throughout the NFL for his declaration to retire from football if he could not use his old style helmet, which happens to be a Schutt AiR Advantage.

The league has required all NFL players to utilize a certain selection of helmet styles and Brown’s just happens to no longer be suitable for that list.

Brown has worn the Schutt AiR Advantage since 2009 and by league rules, helmet styles more than 10-years-old are considered “unapproved.”

This means that the star wideout needs to abide by league guidelines or else he won’t be allowed to play, which in turn, means a potential “breach of contract” and Brown won’t get paid.

That’s the gist of the backstory.

However, the league has since reached out and declared to Brown that he can use the Schutt AiR Advantage if he can find a more recent installation of the helmet. He’s since taken to Twitter in patented AB fashion to try and find a helmet that the league will approve.

Here’s the thing about this situation. On one hand, we have Antonio Brown who has a knack for the flashy and controversial. He’s been seen as a “diva-like” figure in this league for years now due to his antics on and off the field.

So, it can be easy to just pass this off as “AB being AB” and putting on his normal show.

But then there’s a whole other side to this where we’re now being made aware of many players in the NFL having issues with new helmet regulations, Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers included.

It’s a safety issue with the NFL concerning these new-style helmets, but the thing is if so many of the players aren’t vibing with the new equipment, isn’t there a problem here that should be addressed?

Routine is a big part of sports. In baseball, we see starting pitchers map out their throwing days from the minute they wake up to the time they take the mound at 7:05 pm with over 100 throws mixed in-between.

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In basketball, pre-game warmups and shootarounds are key to how a player feels on a particular night and could decide whether or not they actually suit up. And in football, equipment actually plays a bigger factor than the typical fan would expect.

Though deemed as “safer,” these types of helmets that the NFL has on the “approved’ list may indeed minimize head trauma, but at the same time, how is vision affected? Can a player still have access to a full view of the field and peripherals?

Maybe certain facemasks are not banned that would allow a wider array of vision for — let’s say — quarterbacks who need to see the entire landscape on any given play. What about weight?

With all the specialized padding inside the helmet, does the heaviness increase and cause the body to carry an extra couple of pounds unnecessarily? That could affect the speed and fluidity of motion.

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At the end of the day, it’s going to come down to safety vs. comfort/routine and who knows where that issue will end up. Players will probably air on the side of how they perform with any piece of equipment.

If a certain piece of equipment like a helmet diminishes their on-field play, there’s going to be a problem. If the league allows players to wear lower-regulated equipment, then safety comes into play and the league could then face litigation in the future for lack-of-safety.

So, either way we look at it, somebody is going to have to give a little to get a little.

Could there be a compromise between the two sides? Is this going to be a battle between the players and the league?

We will soon find out.