Antonio Brown might not want to give up his crusade to wear his preferred helmet, but it looks like it's a losing battle.
Brown returned to Raiders training camp last week after losing his grievance with the NFL to wear the Schutt Air Advantage helmet that he has worn his entire career. The star receiver and his camp believed they were close to finding a solution to the headache-inducing helmet problem, but that apparently is not the case.
The seven-time Pro-Bowl selection went through a walkthrough with the Raiders on Saturday and appeared to be ready to go following the mysterious case of frostbitten feet that has plagued him for the past few weeks. Brown reportedly found a Schutt Air Advantage that was manufactured in 2011 and believed that since it was within the 10-year window he would be cleared to wear it. But the NFL reportedly changed its position and required the helmet to be tested. It reportedly failed the test and Brown left Raiders camp again to try and solve his helmet conundrum.
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While Brown's preferred method of solving his problem involves him finding a Schutt Air Advantage that will pass the certification test, a league source told NBC Sports California's Scott Bair that the Schutt Air Advantage now has been placed on the NFL's list of unapproved helmets. All models.
General manager Mike Mayock delivered a public ultimatum to his star receiver Sunday, telling Brown he needs to be "all-in or all-out."
In an attempt to be "all-in," Brown's camp reportedly sent the NFL two other models of the Schutt Air Advantage, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, but those, obviously, are not expected to pass.
The Raiders had a team meeting Monday that Brown attended, but they did not practice. Practice will resume Tuesday in Alameda before the Raiders head to Winnipeg to face the Packers in their third preseason game. If Brown is a full participant Tuesday that could show he's about to put the helmet issue behind him.
[RELATED: If AB isn't 'all-in," Raiders have very few options]
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With the regular season quickly approaching, Brown will need to find a remedy for his helmet issue quickly if he and the Raiders plan to hit the ground running in Week 1.