Antonio Brown: Most likely destinations after release from Raiders

Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks need receivers. Plain and simple. With Doug Baldwin retiring this offseason, Tyler Lockett is the lone go-to target Russell Wilson has remaining on the roster from a season ago. Seattle did draft D.K. Metcalf in the second round of this year’s draft, but they should certainly be open to bringing in more weapons to put at Wilson’s disposal.

Wilson and head coach Pete Carroll are also guys that may be able to get through to Brown and get him focused on football. The Hawks have become a run-first offense in recent years, but bringing in a receiver like Brown could help balance the offseason and unload the box for the run game.

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts are another wide receiver needy team. They have standout T.Y. Hilton, but a lot of question marks behind him on the depth chart. Devin Funchess came over from Carolina in free agency but hasn’t proven himself as a top option. They have young playmakers Parris Campbell and Deon Cain on the roster, but they will need time to develop.

Obviously, with the retirement of quarterback Andrew Luck, the Colts are in an interesting situation. They were a popular sleeper pick to make some noise in the AFC this year, but will now turn over the reigns of the offense to Jacoby Brissett. But the Colts feel that Brissett still gives them a good chance to be successful, and if they are still focused on winning now, they have to consider bringing in Brown.

The Colts may take a chance on him and see if it pans out. Brown has a connection with Hilton, as Hilton’s dad coached Brown in high school, per Benjamin Allbright. Signing AB is clearly high-risk, high reward. The Colts may want to just focus on developing a certain culture in their organization and embrace a bit of a rebuilding season, or they may want all the great football players they can get to have a winning season despite losing their quarterback.

Denver Broncos

No, unfortunately, if Brown signs with Denver he will not be eligible to play against the Raiders week one. But he would see them again this season. Denver has Brown’s former Steeler teammate Emmanuel Sanders on the roster and could try to use him as a way to get Brown to buy-in.

Additionally, another connection that Allbright outlined is that current Broncos receivers coach Zach Azzanni was Brown’s position coach in college. Denver has a few young receivers that they really like in Courtland Sutton, DaeSean Hamilton, and Tim Patrick, but it wouldn’t be out of the question for Elway to give Brown a try.

Who knows where Antonio Brown will end up signing, or if anyone will even take the chance on him. But his talent is too much for him to sit out there. Get him in a situation that he is happy and comfortable with, and I think Antonio Brown will get back to being an All-Pro receiver as opposed to one giant distraction.

He is always going to be Antonio Brown. His personality is who he is. That’s why I don’t necessarily love the fit in New England. I think a team needs to lay out their expectations of him, tell him exactly what the consequences will be if he does not meet those expectations, and then embrace him for who he is. If AB is comfortable and happy, he will perform. Hopefully.

I’d love to see those NFC contenders vie for his services and see who he chooses to join. The Eagles, Saints, Packers, and Cowboys could all become NFC favorites if they land a bought-in Brown. AB can sign as early as 4:01 EST today, so we will all be staying tuned to see where the next chapter of the Antonio Brown saga will be taking place.