The NFL season is a about a month away from kicking off, but that hasn't stopped players from getting excited to be back on the field.
Thanks to social media, players can quickly and easily interact with each other. The New York Jets' Brandon Marshall took that idea to heart, posting a video on Instagram challenging the Pittsburgh Steelers' Antonio Brown to a little wager. The prize for the winner? A new car, courtesy of the loser.
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In the video, Marshall sets the stakes: whoever gets more receiving yards during the upcoming season wins the bet. If Marshall wins, he'll go home with Brown's Rolls-Royce. If Brown wins, he'll snag Marshall's Porsche.
In response, Brown told reporters that Marshall was just looking for some PR, and is "too old to be doing that." However, he said if Marshall's really serious, the Jets receiver should call Brown. He'll gladly accept it, but it seems Brown doesn't consider it a real bet if it's only posted on the Internet.
At first glance, it looks like Marshall is a major underdog here. Brown has led the league in receptions the past two seasons, and has been either first or second in receiving yardage in each of the last three years. He caught 136 passes in 2015, good for 1834 yards. Only the Falcons' Julio Jones had more, getting 37 more yards than Brown.
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Marshall, meanwhile, did have a very strong season in New York last year, amassing 1,502 yards on 109 catches. However, he's cracked the Top 10 just twice in the past four years, and is also four years older than Brown, with a lot more mileage on his body.
Hey, to be the best, you have to beat the best, right?
Marshall might be feeling a bit more confident now that his quarterback from last year signed with the team–Ryan Fitzpatrick just agreed to a one-year, $12 million deal. The other Jets quarterbacks either haven't thrown a pass in the NFL (Bryce Petty, Christian Hackenberg) or are better known for being punched in the jaw by a former teammate (Geno Smith). Having that familiarity helps, though it'll still be an uphill battle for Marshall.
There's also the slight issue that the Jets receiver is breaking NFL rules by gambling on what happens during games. This is the same league that throws a flag for any kind of celebration and fines players for wearing the wrong-colored cleats. We'll see if the bet is still standing come Week 1.
If it is, one receiver is going to have a nice addition to his garage by the time the playoffs roll around.
