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WR Antonio Brown, FA (4 Viewers)

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports Antonio Brown claims he was injured and unable to re-enter the Bucs' Week 17 game against the Jets.

Brown reportedly told Tampa trainers that he couldn't get back into the game "because in his mind, he did not feel he was healthy." Brown last week tweaked his injured ankle during practice and was considered a game-time call for Week 17. Bucs head coach Bruce Arians told Brown that if he wasn't going to re-enter the contest, he should leave the sideline. Brown, as the world saw, did just that in what was the most bizarre scene in recent NFL history. Longtime Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud said the report "sounds like a pure set up for a grievance by Brown with the Bucs to get his money." This saga is a long way from over; perhaps the Bucs learned that playing with fire leads to occasional third-degree burns. Brown posted on social media Monday morning that he "knew the game was still going," saying he left the contest because he is "super gremlin." With Brown out, Tyler Johnson and Cyril Grayson should see more run in the Tampa offense. 

RELATED: 

Cyril Grayson

, Tyler Johnson

SOURCE: Ian Rapoport on Twitter

Jan 3, 2022, 8:11 AM ET
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Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.

About an hour later I see AB throwing losing his mind and see photos shortly after of him waiting on his uber while the game is still going.

 I thought I woke up in the twilight zone yesterday. Can't recall a day like that, at least not since 9/11, when several times in the day I asked myself did these things really happen? Not that I'm trying to equate AB throwing his career away to someone losing their life but sometimes the brain just can't wrap around stuff that is actually happening and yesterday was one of those days.

 
And as for if AB's career is done. I'm about 98% sure it is and if anyone cares to look back at this thread when he was out of the league for 1.5 years you'll see I was adamant he'd play again and have options. Not this time. The only situation I could see him returning, and due to his age this would probably need to happen next year, would be like late in the year we see a team lose some key WR's and he's brought in a no guaranteed deal for a few weeks of service.  Even under this scenario not sure a team will get that desperate or AB would think it's financially worth it so even this is slim but I'd give it a 1-2% chance.

For sure no team will ever enter a season with AB on the roster.

 
menobrown said:
Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.

About an hour later I see AB throwing losing his mind and see photos shortly after of him waiting on his uber while the game is still going.

 I thought I woke up in the twilight zone yesterday. Can't recall a day like that, at least not since 9/11, when several times in the day I asked myself did these things really happen? Not that I'm trying to equate AB throwing his career away to someone losing their life but sometimes the brain just can't wrap around stuff that is actually happening and yesterday was one of those days.
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that's terrible...sorry to hear about your brother in law.

 
menobrown said:
Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.

About an hour later I see AB throwing losing his mind and see photos shortly after of him waiting on his uber while the game is still going.

 I thought I woke up in the twilight zone yesterday. Can't recall a day like that, at least not since 9/11, when several times in the day I asked myself did these things really happen? Not that I'm trying to equate AB throwing his career away to someone losing their life but sometimes the brain just can't wrap around stuff that is actually happening and yesterday was one of those days.
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Sorry to hear that, meno. 

 
menobrown said:
Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.

About an hour later I see AB throwing losing his mind and see photos shortly after of him waiting on his uber while the game is still going.

 I thought I woke up in the twilight zone yesterday. Can't recall a day like that, at least not since 9/11, when several times in the day I asked myself did these things really happen? Not that I'm trying to equate AB throwing his career away to someone losing their life but sometimes the brain just can't wrap around stuff that is actually happening and yesterday was one of those days.
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Damn dude...sorry for your loss.  Don't take this the wrong way, just weird that one of my FF "idols" has a sister returning fire.

 
menobrown said:
Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.

About an hour later I see AB throwing losing his mind and see photos shortly after of him waiting on his uber while the game is still going.

 I thought I woke up in the twilight zone yesterday. Can't recall a day like that, at least not since 9/11, when several times in the day I asked myself did these things really happen? Not that I'm trying to equate AB throwing his career away to someone losing their life but sometimes the brain just can't wrap around stuff that is actually happening and yesterday was one of those days.
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Jesus, meno. My condolences about you and your sister's loss. That's unspeakably horrible. I hope the coming days are not too painful. Thinking about you, man. 

 
menobrown said:
Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.
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Sorry to hear of your loss. Sorry to hear they were in that situation.

 
menobrown said:
Not to get to personal but a little after kickoff of the early afternoon games yesterday my mom calls me to let me know my sister had been in a shootout where she was unharmed and able to return fire and believes she had at least one hit(he got away, statewide manhunt on-going) but the shootout ultimately left her husband dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds.

About an hour later I see AB throwing losing his mind and see photos shortly after of him waiting on his uber while the game is still going.

 I thought I woke up in the twilight zone yesterday. Can't recall a day like that, at least not since 9/11, when several times in the day I asked myself did these things really happen? Not that I'm trying to equate AB throwing his career away to someone losing their life but sometimes the brain just can't wrap around stuff that is actually happening and yesterday was one of those days.
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that's awful, some evil bad people in this world, sorry for the loss :(

 
Tampa Bay Times' Rick Stroud reports that Buccaneers WR Antonio Brown's camp believed he should not have played in Week 17 due to his ankle injury.

Stroud reports that "the belief is Antonio [Brown] probably should've never been on the field to begin with Sunday" after the wide receiver went to a non-team-affiliated surgeon and adds that an official release from Brown's camp will be coming soon. The Buccaneers are supposedly in active talks with the league about how they should handle the whole situation, presumably so that they can get him off the roster without having to pay him his salary. More is sure to come in this saga.

SOURCE: Rick Stroud on Twitter

Jan 4, 2022, 6:28 PM ET
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Surprised there's not a lot more talk about Brown's statement today.  Maybe I'm gullible but it does seem like there's a possibility it could be true.  But he REALLY should release some photos of that MRI.... if he's telling the truth, why not?

I also would love to see if a camera caught Ariens doing the throat cut gesture.  There HAS to be a camera angle/fan cell phone video of him doing that/not doing that, right???????

 
Deamon said:
Surprised there's not a lot more talk about Brown's statement today.  Maybe I'm gullible but it does seem like there's a possibility it could be true.  But he REALLY should release some photos of that MRI.... if he's telling the truth, why not?

I also would love to see if a camera caught Ariens doing the throat cut gesture.  There HAS to be a camera angle/fan cell phone video of him doing that/not doing that, right???????
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I agree. In this day and age we’re living in it’ll be Arians who gets cut not Brown. 

 
Deamon said:
Surprised there's not a lot more talk about Brown's statement today.  Maybe I'm gullible but it does seem like there's a possibility it could be true.  But he REALLY should release some photos of that MRI.... if he's telling the truth, why not?

I also would love to see if a camera caught Ariens doing the throat cut gesture.  There HAS to be a camera angle/fan cell phone video of him doing that/not doing that, right???????
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Anything is possible.

However, AB has no credibility.  And a long history of reneging on money he owes people and overall irrational behavior... my first thought was the same as yours though.. but more along the lines of "there will be no video of a throat slash".  We shall see.

 
DropKick said:
but more along the lines of "there will be no video of a throat slash".  We shall see.
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Nor proof of a “dangerous sedative”.

Here’s the thing about drugs like that. There’s tracking. It’s a pro sports team - they have track & trace to the distributor on whatever it was. A simple inventory, &/or blood test from brown should clear all this up. 

 
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In a statement issued Wednesday evening, Antonio Brown insinuates coach Bruce Arians ordered him to play on his injured ankle in Week 17 against the Jets and then told Brown he was "done" with the team after he refused to go back into the game.

Brown had been dealing with an ankle injury for weeks leading up to last Sunday's drama. “Because of my commitment to the game, I relented to pressure directly from my coach to play injured,” Brown said. “Despite the pain, I suited up. The staff injected me with what I now know was a powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller that the NFLPA has warned against using, and I gave it my all for the team." Brown says he played “until it was clear that I could not use my ankle to safely perform my playing responsibilities,” and “the pain was extreme." Brown says he took a seat on the bench, and that Arians approach him “vey upset” and exclaimed, “What’s wrong with you? What’s wrong with you?” Brown claims he told Arians that his ankle was bothering him. AB claims Arians continued to press Brown to play. Brown said he couldn’t. Brown claims that Arians shouted, “You’re done!” and made a throat-slash gesture. “I didn’t quit,” Brown said. “I was cut. I didn’t walk away from my brothers. I was thrown out.” If all this is true, AB likely has a legitimate case. Brown is having season-ending surgery to repair what he said is cartilage loss, a torn ligament, and broken bone fragments.

- Adam Schefter, Twitter
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AB's texts to Arians - https://twitter.com/AB84/status/1479073303134457858

 
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I believe there is a decent amount of truth to what AB is saying. That basically Arian's was pushing him to play when he said he was not able and then told him to basically leave if he can't play. This was reported days ago by Rapapport and Mike Lombardi so this is not just AB's account.

But a few things:

AB might have thought he got cut, and surely if a throat slash really happened I get why, but I have a hard time thinking AB did not just get the situation confused. Now saying that I would again say that Rapapport and Lombardi said their sources said that Arian's did actually cut him on the sidelines during the game so I'm not going to dismiss this claim either.

I don't understand AB's going on an on about Arian's not knowing he was injured. That's stupid. Arian's said they did not discuss the injury during the game but obviously knew he had been dealing with an injury. This whole spiel by AB that Arian's is denying he ever knew AB was injured is odd, or just dumb and speaks to how AB might be misreading a situation.

Even if a lot of what AB is saying is true I think a lot of the backstory is missing. Reports are friction existed ever since AB returned from suspension. Pat Mcafee mentioned how Mike Evans was the only teammate to try and talk AB down which to me sounds a bit like AB had been a PIA lately. If things went down the way AB said why would his teammates like Brady and Suh not back him up as a teammate but only as a person and say things like asking for compassion for him and being there if they need him? That again makes me think there was more to the backstory and a certain way AB had been acting since he returned, a way that was off and/or a PIA.

I still think Arian's added fuel to the fire. When you get suspended you got to leave the team. Arian's saying he might cut him  just left a guy with a fragile mental state away from his teammates, future unknown and twisting in the wind. Again considering his mental state and how people can go down dark paths of thought this was not well played by Bruce,  he chose to poke the bear

 
Arians never wanted Antonio Brown around though; Tom Brady went over his head and went to the owner before bringing it to Arians. So it doesn't surprise me than maybe Arians might have been a bit testy in dealing with AB and now that he's gone, doing the diplomatic "model citizens" route since he doesn't have to deal with him anymore. However, there's a lot of stuff posted by AB's lawyer where if there's enough of it true, Arians and the Bucs are gonna have to pay AB a lot of his money back.

That being said, this is some damn good lawyering by Sean Burstyn because Tampa Bay may have not covered their bases. If they can actually get video evidence ... 😄

 
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I remember my grandmother saying, "If you hang out with pigs, don't be surprised when you get covered in mud."

She was a sharp, old bird. The Buccaneers are now getting covered in mud.

 
Brown was on a one year deal.   With just one game check left in season Bucs should have just sat him,  paid him off what was owed and been done with him.

 
Da Guru said:
Dallas is finally on the right track after dealing with so many malcontents over the years.  I would be suprised if Jones wants to rock the boat again..but it is Jones.
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What am I missing?  how is he going to play for anyone if he's too injured to play and needs surgery?  

 
If this is the way Brown's career ends, then so ends the career of a top-5 WR in NFL history in my opinion, and a guy who was probably still a top-5 WR, when healthy, in 2021. 

 
Buccaneers waived WR Antonio Brown.

Brown and his agent requested that the remaining $2 million in incentives in his contract for this year be guaranteed, per Bucs GM Jason Licht, but the team declined after it made two doctors’ appointments in New York — where Brown was staying after he quit in the third quarter — so they could place AB on injured reserve and pay him for the remainder of the year only to find out he missed both appointments. The 33-year-old veteran, who has likely played his last down of professional football forever, will inevitably go unclaimed on waivers and enter the offseason as a free agent with the 21st most catches in NFL history. 

- Adam Schefter, Twitter
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FINALLY we can rename the thread "WR Antonio Brown, Free Agent". @Casting Couch?

 
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trader jake said:
I remember my grandmother saying, "If you hang out with pigs, don't be surprised when you get covered in mud."

She was a sharp, old bird. The Buccaneers are now getting covered in mud.
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Again, Tom Brady wanted Brown and went over Arians' head to get him.

 
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A LOT to unpack here

ProFootballTalk: Bruce Arians blames Antonio Brown’s refusal to play on lack of targets

Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians tried to say as little as possible regarding Antonio Brown‘s exit from the team. On Thursday, after Brown accused Arians of pressuring Brown to play while injured, Arians had no choice but to provide more details.

Arians claimed that Brown at no point in the game complained to the trainer or the doctor about his injured ankle, and that Arians wasn’t notified about any issues with the ankle. Arians also made it clear that Brown’s reluctance flowed from frustration over the number of footballs being thrown his way.

“He was very upset at halftime about who was getting targeted,” Arians said. “Got that calmed down, players took care of that. It started again on the sideline. We called for the personnel group that he had played in the entire game. He refused to go in the game. That’s when I looked back and saw him basically wave off the coach. I then went back, approached him about what was going on. ‘I ain’t playing.’ What’s going on? ‘I ain’t getting the ball.’ That’s when I said, ‘You’re done, get the eff out of here.'”

Asked about the throat-slash gesture that Arians allegedly made to Brown, Arians laughed and suggested that it was the motion with his finger, telling Brown to leave.

“You can’t force a player to play,” Arians added. “I mean, they have that choice. It’s their body. He decided to play. He and Mike both were on pitch counts. And we were trying to manage that the best we could in the first half.”

Arians’s explanation defies common sense, frankly. The mere that that Brown was on a pitch count shows that THEY KNEW Brown was injured. And if Brown, who clearly had an injury, truly didn’t want to play because he wasn’t getting enough targets, why wouldn’t he blame it on his ankle? He had a built-in excuse. Even if the ankle wasn’t bothering him, Brown’s easiest play to justify not playing would have been to say that his ankle is bothering him.

It’s also now clear that Brown left the field during the game because (drum roll, please), HIS HEAD COACH TOLD HIM TO.

To the extent that Brown had frustrations about targets, the Bucs only have themselves to blame. Despite his history of erratic, selfish behavior, they gave him a contract that tied compensation to production. (The Rams, in contrast, tied Odell Beckham‘s 2021 contractual extras to team achievements, not individual statistics.)

The Bucs clearly were on notice of Brown’s concern regarding his ability to reach his incentives. G.M. Jason Licht acknowledged on Thursday that Brown and his agent had asked for the balance of Brown’s incentive package to be guaranteed. The team declined to do so.

Thus, Brown had to earn it. To earn it, he had to play — and to get the ball. So he fought through injury to have a chance to get the money, and he became frustrated when he wasn’t getting the ball.

Again, why give someone like Brown that kind of incentive? He was pissed off because he was losing chances to earn his incentives. And when he indeed chose to stop playing, why wouldn’t he have mentioned his ankle? You know, the ankle that had him on a pitch count?

Indeed, it could be argued that Arians should have affirmatively asked whether the ankle was an issue, instead of waiting for Brown to utter magic words that arguably didn’t need to be uttered.

They knew he was injured. They knew he wanted to earn his incentives. They knew he was upset that he wasn’t getting chances to get closer to his incentives. Then, when he refused to play, they didn’t bother to think that maybe it was because of an ankle injury that he was willing to deal with in order to reach his incentives. Then, after he left the field during the game, Arians didn’t bother to correct the perception that Brown left on his own volition, and not because Arians told him to “get the eff out of here.”

There’s plenty of blame to go around on this one. The Buccaneers handled it poorly, from the moment they agreed to pay him incentives based on individual performance until the instant that they released him. Brown handled it poorly, especially when he decided to make a major stink on social media in order to get himself released. (Then again, it worked.) And Arians handled it poorly, poorly enough that he probably should be wondering whether an ownership group that has no qualms about pushing coaches out the door (Tony Dungy, Jon Gruden, Raheem Morris, Greg Schiano, Lovie Smith, Dirk Koetter) will decide that it’s time to elevate Byron Leftwich or Todd Bowles, while they still can.
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This is a complete ####show

 
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Here's what happened.

  • AB was hurt and everyone knew that.
  • AB wanted to push through his injury and play (probably for his incentives).
  • I doubt AB is in as much pain as he says he is. Evidenced by the way he ran off the field.
  • During the game, AB was probably pissed he was playing through injury but not getting targets. So he battled through injury and still not reaching his incentives. He probably thinks its a ploy to not get his $1m.
  • AB becomes AB and says hes not playing. BA asks him to leave. AB makes a spectacle leaving and claims he was cut and told the coaches during the game he was too injured to play.
 
Thus, Brown had to earn it. To earn it, he had to play — and to get the ball. So he fought through injury to have a chance to get the money, and he became frustrated when he wasn’t getting the ball.
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And there it is. The entire reason AB quit on his team. He wasn't getting the ball. He wasn't playing through injury, he was trying to get paid & putting AB over the team. As AB always does. As AB has always done. 

I continue to believe that he legitimately forgot that there was an 18th game. He was on track to hit all of his seasonal incentives. 

I do not believe a word from AB or his attorney. 

 
jobarules said:
Here's what happened.

  • AB was hurt and everyone knew that.
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Did they? 

Last I checked he'd had a couple of games off because of the fake vaccination card stunt. He was well-rested, and looked like he was moving just fine on that ankle, both in the game, and during his overly dramatic exit from the game. 

What everyone knows is that AB is a self-centered wacko who lacks credibility. After his stunt in Oakland, he never should have played football again. Yet here we are.  

 
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