First Call: Ravens QB Lamar Jackson makes all-out pitch to sign Antonio Brown
Share this post:
For “First Call” Thursday, Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is applying a full-court press when it comes to former Steeler Antonio Brown.
He wants him in purple and black.
On three different occasions since Apr. 1, Jackson has either worked out with Brown, propped him up online, or spoken of him in positive terms.
Make it four.
“It was nice throwing to Antonio Brown,” Jackson said of a springtime practice session. “I was hoping we would get him. Still hoping, a little bit.”
Via Sports Illustrated Wednesday, Jackson made a pitch for Brown’s character, despite his current outcast status from the NFL.
“He’s a cool, down-to-earth guy and he’s passionate about the sport of football,” Jackson said. “When he was working, you could tell, this man, he’s going to go 24/7. And after the workout, he still went and lifted.”
I don’t think Steelers fans would be surprised with that. When Brown was with the Steelers, his workout routines and practice techniques were legendary.
This is the quote from Jackson that raised eyebrows in Pittsburgh, though.
And probably Oakland.
Maybe New England.
“I’m like, ‘Man, this guy, there’s no quitting with him,’” Jackson continued. “That’s the type of guy we need in our locker room. And I feel like the locker room here is different from any other locker room. It’s like a brotherhood going on. It’s none of that outside noise; it’s strictly inside.”
Ummmmm …
Nope. Wait. Wait. Jackson wasn’t done.
“We worry about each other; we worry about what we have going on. We want to win, and I can just tell in him that he wants to win. He wants to play ball.”
Is there another NFLPA wide receiver named Antonio Brown I’m not aware of? Can we clarify and have the former All Pro just refer to himself as “Himmothy” permanently from now on to avoid confusion?
Seriously, Lamar? “No quitting with him”?
The A.B. I know quit on the Steelers in Week 17 of 2018. And he quit on the Raiders when he didn’t like his helmet. He also quit the league (or “retired”) two or three times since the Patriots released him in September of last year.
But, no, aside from that, no quit in him at all.
Oh, and if you consider constant celebration flags, midnight treadmill rants on Instagram, court cases, league discipline deliberations, trade demands, practice absences, screaming at backup quarterbacks, frequent public condemnations of ownership, management, and teammates as “none of that outside noise,” again you are correct.
And for a guy who just “wants to play ball,” boy, does Brown find ways to prevent himself from being able to do so.
I get where Jackson is coming from. He’s intoxicated by Mr. Big Chest’s talent. He’s not the first. He won’t be the last.
Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft, Ben Roethlisberger, Mike Tomlin, Jon Gruden. All those guys were willing to make sacrifices in the name of normalcy to get Brown’s ungodly skills on the field.
But the mortgage comes due eventually. As the Patriots and Raiders will attest, it came much more quickly than it ever did in Pittsburgh.
Good luck to Jackson. If he gets his wish and the Ravens sign Brown, enjoy it while it lasts.
For the Steelers, it was nine productive, but tumultuous, years.
For the Raiders, it was a few practices.
For the Patriots, it was four quarters.
I’ll let Jackson set his own over-under in Maryland.
And I’ll let everyone else set their own odds on Brown ever winning a ring.