Browns' Damarious Randall now says his NBA Finals jersey offer was 'obviously' a joke
As an NFL defensive back, Damarious Randall is no stranger to backpedaling. On Wednesday, Randall was back at it again.
The new Browns safety saw his Twitter presence explode on Tuesday when he said that he would buy jerseys for everyone who retweeted the following:
If the Cleveland Cavaliers win the 2018 NBA finals I’ll buy everyone who retweet’s this a jersey... — Damarious Randall (@RandallTime) May 29, 2018 100% chance 🤙🏾🤙🏾 https://t.co/ChKwjvHnT1 — Damarious Randall (@RandallTime) May 29, 2018
It turns out, some things are too good to be true. To the displeasure of the 831,404 tweeters who mashed the RT button (as of 5:10 p.m. ET on Wednesday), Randall will not be following through on his promise. On Wednesday, Randall, who said that he didn't think it would even get over 100 retweets, clarified that he was joking -- "obviously."
"I definitely didn't think the Cleveland fan base would go this crazy about it," Randall said, per ESPN's Pat McManamon. "Obviously, it is a joke. Just to know how passionate this fan base is, it is really encouraging. ...
"I didn't think people [would] actually view that as a serious tweet from me."
Clearly, Randall was not going to buy and ship 831,404 jerseys to 831,404 different people. A quick search on the NFL's shop reveals that you can get a jersey for $99.99. Without factoring in tax or any additional fees, Randall would be looking at a total cost of $83,132,086. According to Spotrac, Randall's cash earnings through the first three years of his career add up to $6,492,000.
So no, it's definitely not happening -- unless he follows John Breech's advice:
If Damarious Randall can find 875,000 clearance rack Manziel jerseys, I think he might be able to afford to pay for this giveaway. #Browns #NBAFinals #Cavs https://t.co/PHEYoFXvgM pic.twitter.com/MVFdmGwXxx — John Breech (@johnbreech) May 30, 2018
So, how does Randall plan on paying off his debt?
"We'll talk about this after the series is over," he said, adding he would do something for the fans regardless of the result.
This probably isn't the best way for Randall's Browns career to begin. Traded from Green Bay to Cleveland in March, Randall is expected to transition from cornerback to safety on the Browns' young defense. To this point, Randall's been a capable player, racking up 10 interceptions in three seasons, but in the aftermath of that tweet, his decision-making should be called into question.
As a result, Randall will probably not be attending Games 3 and 4 in Cleveland.
"I don't think any Cavs fans would sell me any tickets anymore," he said.
Browns quarterback Tyrod Taylor's advice for Randall: "Don't hit send." In other words: never tweet.
No word yet if former Browns left tackle and future Hall of Famer Joe Thomas was kidding when he countered Randall's "joke" with this offer:
Ok, it can be any signed, game worn @NBA jersey. Doesn’t have to be @warriors. — Joe Thomas (@joethomas73) May 30, 2018
He better be kidding. The Warriors opened as 1/10 favorites to win the Finals and are the biggest Finals favorites in 16 seasons.