Antonio Brown has done much worse than what he did on Sunday. But his latest stunt, pulling a Ned from Slap Shot and literally running out on the Bucs mid-game, was his most public and arguably most surreal.
We now have more context on the incident. Jay Glazer first reported on Sunday that Bucs head coach Bruce Arians tried multiple times to put Brown in the game, but the receiver “refused.” Glazer’s source? Arians himself.
On witnessing Brown strip before jogging off the field, Arians said: “Yeah, I did [see that]. Never seen anything like it in all my years.”
Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network added further context to the situation in a Monday appearance on “Good Morning Football.” He reported that Brown didn’t go into the game because of a standoff with Arians – and the Bucs’ training staff.
“They believed that he was healthy. Antonio Brown did not believe that he was healthy,” Rapoport said. “He had been battling an ankle injury for the last several weeks. He did not practice Thursday, he did not practice Friday. I know personally, he had some doubts whether he would be able to be out there and play. 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 believe he was healthy.”
Jan 2, 2022; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown (81) on the field before the game against the New York Jets during the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
If anything, it may not have ended wildly enough. The league might be lucky Brown didn’t expose himself.
Either way, that was an all-timer of a bizarre moment for the volatile Brown and for the NFL. It feels like the final curtain for Brown’s football career, and the hope now is that he Gets The Help He Needs™ before he seriously harms himself or others … again.
