Wide receiver Antonio Brown insists that he did not quit on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, alleging instead that he was "fired on the sideline for having a painful injury."
In a lengthy statement released Wednesday night by his attorney Sean Burstyn, Brown laid out his version of what happened in the sideline confrontation that led to his ouster from the team and called Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians' account "100% inaccurate."
Brown said that that against his better judgement, he "relented to pressure directly from my coach to play" through an ankle injury in Sunday's game against the New York Jets and that the Buccaneers staff "injected me with what I now know was a powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller that the (NFL Players Association) has warned against using." Brown added that he "gave it my all for the team" but that once it became clear that he couldn't safely play at a high level, he sat down, which he claims upset Arians.
The coach said Monday that he was not informed by the medical staff that Brown was hurt in any manner, but Arians declined to relay the contents of the conversation that he had with Brown.
Asked about Brown's reason for removing his pads and jersey and subsequently waiving to fans and leaving the field, Arians said, “You’ll have to ask him, brother.”
Brown alleged that he had a back-and-forth with Arians about his health before the coach told him he was no longer part of the team for refusing to play.
"As part of their ongoing cover-up, they are acting like I wasn't cut and now demanding that I see a doctor of their choice to examine my ankle," Brown said.
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Brown added that an MRI conducted Monday morning revealed broke bone fragments stuck in his ankle and that he will be having surgery. He vowed that once healthy again, he will return to the NFL.
The Buccaneers have yet to formally waive Brown, but Arians said Wednesday that the forthcoming move was a "management decision" at this point.
The final line of the statement read, “I'll be back to 100% and looking forward to next season. Business gonna be BOOMIN!”
A Buccaneers spokesman told USA TODAY Sports that the team did not have any comment on Brown's claims.
This is now the fourth team that has parted ways with Brown. The Pittsburgh Steelers traded him to the Oakland Raiders after repeated clashes with members of the organization. Brown then butted heads with Raiders management during the preseason of 2019 and then forced his release before ever playing a game for the team. He went on to sign with New England but played in just one game before the Patriots cut him after reports of Brown threatening a woman accusing him of sexual harassment became public. Brown signed with Tampa Bay after serving a suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy and helped the Bucs win the Super Bowl last year, catching a touchdown pass in the victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
This season, Brown had appeared in just seven games amid injuries, testing positive for COVID-19 and a three-game suspension for providing a falsified vaccination card.
Brown recorded 10 catches for 101 yards in his Week 16 return from suspension. But Week 17 saw him record three catches for 26 yards before his bizarre exit.
Follow USA TODAY Sports' Mike Jones on Twitter @ByMikeJones.
