Jon Gruden ‘Loved’ Antonio Brown’s Hype Video That Used Their Phone Conversation

The Antonio Brown saga has finally come to an end in Oakland, with the star receiver being released over the weekend and ultimately signed by the New England Patriots.

Brown and the Raiders had quite the offseason, with him suffering from frostbite after a cryotherapy session gone wrong and then the lengthy issue of his helmet appeal when the NFL banned the helmet he’d used his entire career. In the end, Brown got in a shouting match with GM Mike Mayock during a practice after he posted to Instagram the day before to call out the organization for fining him for missed practices.

There was talk of a suspension for Brown or possible release, before a sudden turn where it was possible he’d suit up for the team on Monday after he released the following hype video featuring a call he had with Raiders coach Jon Gruden.

As we know now, he was eventually released and the Raiders are out a third and fifth round pick for nothing, but there was the curious case of how this hype video got approved. It’s illegal to record a phone call without the other party’s consent and post it, so somehow they had to have gotten Gruden to give the thumbs up on it. As Dan LeBatard learned on Monday from Brown’s video producer, they were shocked they got Gruden’s approval and how they got it is maybe the funniest part.

Gruden saying he “loves it” is just perfect. It’s also hysterical how he signed off on this the day before Brown was released. The most amazing part of it all is that now Mayock and Gruden have to figure out how to move forward after Gruden essentially tried to bring back the guy that dressed down the GM days prior in front of the whole team. Oakland will make its season debut on Monday Night Football against the Broncos at home, and we’ll see how well they’re able to put all of this behind them.