Antonio Brown Makes Abnormal Exit From Tampa Bay’s Week 17 Game

In the middle of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game against the New York Jets, wide receiver Antonio Brown stripped his shirt and gear before storming off the field. Although he cited his reason behind the actions as medical, he is no longer on Tampa Bay’s roster.

Prior to the game, the 33-year-old athlete had missed several games due to an ankle injury, around the same time as his COVID-19 vaccination scandal.

Although he was cleared by team doctors to play and was seen jumping around the end-zone, Brown himself reported feeling like his ankle was not healthy enough to play on, so he exited the game.

“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,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapport relayed, discussing the situation on Good Morning Football.

Rapport added, “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.”

Bruce Arians discusses Antonio Brown

Although storming off the field during the 3rd quarter of a game some questions, Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians told the media that he and Brown “had a conversation”, which resulted in the athlete leaving the field.

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The coach commented in a press conference on Monday in reference to the event, “I mean, what happened. … It was pretty obvious what happened. He left the field and that was it.”

Still, Arians felt it was best to let go of the wide receiver and Brown has officially been removed from Tampa Bay’s roster. “He is no longer a Buc. Alright, that’s the end of the story. Let’s talk about the guys that went out there and won the game,” the 69-year-old coach said.

In addition, he emphasized that he wishes Brwon nothing but love moving forward. “I wish him well. I hope if he needs help, gets some. It’s very hard because I do care about him,” Arians noted. When asked about whether or not he has regrets about bringing Brown onto the team, he responded, “No, none whatsoever…I just hope the best for him.”

The football player is yet to make a detailed response to what occurred, he has shared on social media various posts that have alluded to the event. “Thanks for the opportunity,” he wrote in the caption of an Instagram post.

mattsinclair