Antonio Brown reportedly did not feel he was healthy enough to play in Sunday’s game against the Jets, which ultimately led to his bizarre dismissal from the team.
The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver has been battling an ankle injury much of the season — missing time earlier this year and being limited in practice — and argued with the coaching staff that he could not re-enter the game because he was not healthy, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
“What he told the staff, from what I understand, is that he was not going into the game because, in his mind, he did not feel he was healthy,” Rapoport said on Monday’s “Good Morning Football.” “The response then from the offensive coaches and from Bruce Arians was, ‘If you are not gonna go into the game when we tell you to go into the game, then you cannot be here.’ At that point, they threw him off the sidelines and then cut him from the team.”
Brown, who was questionable leading into the game, had played in the first half and caught three passes on five targets for 26 yards.
After refusing to re-enter he removed his uniform and tossed his undershirt into the stands and left the field shirtless in the middle of the game.
According to NBC Sports’ Peter King, Mike Evans tried to stop Brown from his outburst but Arians told King, “he had that look in his eye that I haven’t seen for a long time.”
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Arians did not divulge into much detail after the game, aside from confirming Brown was no longer on the team, but did speak more on it to King.
“It’s a shame,” Arians said. “I feel bad for him. He just can’t help himself.”
The veteran wide receiver signed with the Bucs last year after serving a suspension stemming from an incident in which he allegedly attacked a driver of a moving company truck. It also came after allegations of sexual assault and misconduct, too.
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Arians said at the time one slip up and Brown would be gone, but that did not prove to be true. Brown was suspended for three weeks for submitting a fake vaccination card to the league and returned to the team last week.
Obviously, that return was short-lived and now appears that Brown may have played his last game in the NFL as larger issues seem to be hanging over him.
“I hope he can get fixed,” Arians told King.
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