Raiders' Jon Gruden on Patriots Signing Antonio Brown: 'Good Luck to Them'

Oakland Raiders coach Jon Gruden is ready to move on from the franchise's short-lived Antonio Brown era.

Following Monday night's 24-16 victory over the Denver Broncos, Gruden attempted to put the matter behind him while wishing Brown's new team, the New England Patriots, the best of luck:

"As much as people talk about it, I mean, my god. Man, I feel like someone smashed me in my temple on the side of the head. Get over it, man. It's over. You know? We were good in the preseason without him. We’re going to be fine without him. And we wish him the best.

"You know, we gave it a shot. Now New England gets their turn. Good luck to them. I can't deal with it anymore."

It's understandable for Gruden to take that approach given everything he and the Raiders went through since acquiring Brown from the Pittsburgh Steelers in March.

Brown missed the majority of training camp and the preseason after suffering frostbite on his feet after failing to wear proper footwear in a cryotherapy machine. He also found himself in a prolonged dispute with the NFL in hopes of being allowed to wear his helmet of choice, which is no longer approved by the league.

The 31-year-old was nearly suspended after he "got into it" with general manager Mike Mayock last Wednesday after publicly calling out the organization for fining him. Though the Raiders declined to suspend him for the Mayock incident, they did fine him.

Gruden found himself at the center of attention Friday when Brown posted a video of a private conversation between him and the coach, with Gruden telling the wideout to "please stop this s--t and just play football" (contains language NSFW):

The video also featured Gruden asking Brown if he wanted to be a Raider.

"Man, I've been trying to be a Raider since Day 1," Brown said. "... I don't know why it's a question of me being a Raider. It's like, do you guys want me to be a Raider?"

Less than 12 hours after the video was published, though, Brown demanded his release after a fine voided the guaranteed money in his contract. The Raiders granted his request shortly thereafter.

Brown went on to agree to a contract with New England within hours of his release from Oakland.

Releasing Brown rid Gruden of what had grown to be a ceaseless headache. Now, Brown is headed to Foxboro, where Patriots coach Bill Belichick is known for running a no-nonsense operation.