Vikings should continue to have zero interest in Antonio Brown

The free-agent receiver is generating interest around the NFL, but the Minnesota Vikings should stay away.

Back in March, the Minnesota Vikings decided to move on from Stefon Diggs and they sent him packing to try and catch passes with the Buffalo Bills.

In the end, it was a move that almost seemed inevitable. Diggs’ displeasure with his role in the Vikings’ offense was growing and it likely wasn’t going to magically improve during the offseason.

Throw in the fact that the talented receiver made it pretty obvious on his social media accounts that he wanted out of Minnesota, trading him ended up not being a hard decision for the team to make when the Bills sent an offer that included a first-round draft pick.

Antonio Brown should not be someone the Minnesota Vikings are interested in signing.

With Diggs gone, the Vikings will be looking for ways to make up for his lost production in 2020. Minnesota already used a first-round pick on former LSU receiver Justin Jefferson in this year’s NFL Draft, but will that end up being enough?

There are some who believe the Vikings should turn to free agency before the start of the upcoming season and see if they can add another veteran pass-catcher. Antonio Brown is among the top remaining free-agent receivers and there are some who would like to see Minnesota bring him in.

This would just be a terrible idea. There’s no other way to describe it.

The Vikings just got rid of a receiver who had moments during the 2019 season that took the focus off of the football field. If people thought what Diggs did last year was distracting, Brown has the potential to be 1,000-times worse.

Diggs might have made some selfish decisions at times during his tenure with Minnesota. But for the most part, his main focus was on helping the Vikings win.

The same can’t be said for Brown. He’s proven during the last few years that he loves the attention from the media and fans no matter if it’s negative or positive. What has he shown in his absence from the NFL that he’s changed and things will be different when a team gives him another chance to play?

While Mike Zimmer was able to get the most out of controversial players like Pacman Jones and Vontaze Burfict during his time as the defensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals, he’s tended to avoid bringing in players like this during his tenure as Minnesota’s head coach.

Zimmer wants every player’s focus in the locker room to be on the Vikings and nothing else. Guys who are more about using their status in the league to gain popularity like Brown are not players Minnesota has brought in under their current head coach.

At 31-years-old, Brown still probably has a few productive seasons of football left in him. But the Vikings should let him go pursue opportunities elsewhere and focus on making Jefferson their next great receiver.