Raiders’ Antonio Brown rides in hot air balloon, then ruled out

NAPA, Calif. — Antonio Brown loaded into a hot air balloon Friday, a perfectly serene start to his day. He elevated above Pope Valley, an unincorporated area of Napa Valley about 25 miles north of Raiders camp headquarters, and sailed southbound over vineyards and countryside.

In the afternoon, some deflating news surfaced.

He’s been grounded.

The Raiders wide receiver was placed on the nonfootball injury list Friday, signaling his absence from Saturday’s first full-squad practice of training camp. A source characterized the ailment as a “minor issue,” and it appears Brown will join teammates on the field relatively soon.

Brown took to the air as veterans reported to camp.

His ride, filmed by the Raiders’ team website, went without a hitch, said Jared Kimball, co-owner of Napa Valley Aloft Balloon Rides, a family-owned company that oversaw the experience. No apparent link exists between the aerial cruise and the news that followed.

“There was nothing to report,” Kimball said. “Everything went smoothly.”

The team doesn’t appear too concerned about the injury.

Coaches would rather not push Brown too hard, too soon and risk exacerbating the undisclosed ailment. Although building chemistry between him and quarterback Derek Carr is a priority, Brown was not expected to play in the four August exhibition games.

In his absence, Carr has others with whom to build rapport. Tyrell Williams, Ryan Grant, Hunter Renfrow, Keelan Doss and J.J. Nelson are among the wide receivers who, like Brown, joined the team this offseason.

Neither coach Jon Gruden nor general manager Mike Mayock mentioned Brown’s injury situation at an 11 a.m. news conference Friday. Mayock did confirm that fullback Keith Smith will be sidelined during training camp after recently undergoing left knee surgery for a meniscus issue. Mayock also said left guard Denzelle Good will miss about two months following lower back surgery.

Mayock was complimentary of Brown’s work with the team. The Raiders acquired him from the Pittsburgh Steelers in a March trade.

“I can just tell you that at practice,” Mayock said, “when he catches a quick slant and gets vertical and goes, it’s rare to see grown men in the NFL look at each other and just start giggling and laughing, and it happens almost every day in practice. He just does something, and grown men that have been around the league for years look at each other.

“I think what it also does is the young guys get to see how an All-Pro, potential Hall of Famer actually practices on a daily basis. If you’re a young guy and you look at that, you better understand what it takes.”

Soon enough, Brown figures to remind them.

But not on Saturday.

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Contact reporter Michael Gehlken at mgehlken@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GehlkenNFL on Twitter.