Antonio Brown took to Twitter on Thursday to release texts he said were sent to him by Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians two and three days before the receiver’s bizarre departure during a road game against the New York Jets on Sunday.
On top of a screenshot of the texts, he writes: “Health over Wealth # Barbarian.”
Health over Wealth # Barbarian pic.twitter.com/5pxjpZ6491
— AB (@AB84) January 6, 2022
Arians starts the exchange by telling Brown to make sure he would be ready to go for last Friday’s practice, saying the team would not be resting for the playoffs.
Brown, who released a statement on Tuesday saying he has been dealing with an ankle injury, then indicated a day later he hoped to be with the team if he felt better.
Arians then says: “Definitely want you with us in case you’re ready.”
Later Wednesday, Brown put out another tweet praising his teammates.
Don’t get it twisted. My brothers have been good to me. From Tom to practice squad, we were a top-level unit. They have been good to me and knew nothing about my talks with coach last week. The team mishandled this situation. They let me down and, more importantly, my teammates.
— AB (@AB84) January 6, 2022
The oft-troubled wide receiver, who took off his jersey, shoulder pads and undershirt before walking off the sideline during a game Sunday, said in a statement released by his attorney on Tuesday that he was pressured to play and Arians fired him when the player told the coach he was not able to re-enter the game because of his ankle.
While not specifying which ankle was hurt, Brown — through a statement released by his attorney Wednesday — said an MRI performed Monday showed broken bone fragments, a ligament tear and cartilage loss “which are beyond painful. You can see the bone bulging from the outside.”
Arians said the day after the game that Brown did not claim he was injured when he refused to continue playing against the Jets. The coach declined to discuss specifics of the conversation on the sideline and said he had “no clue” why the receiver reacted by storming off the field, tossing some of his gear into the stands and waving to fans at MetLife Stadium.
Although Arians said after the game that Brown was no longer a part of the reigning Super Bowl champions, the 33-year-old receiver who’s caught a pass in his last 144 games remained on the roster Wednesday.
Wednesday’s injury report noted Brown’s absence from practice was “not injury related – personal.”
Asked about the team not making an official transaction in regard to Brown, who did not accompany the team back to Tampa following Sunday’s game, Arians replied: “It’s a management decision on what is happening right now.’
— With files from The Associated Press
[relatedlinks]
COMMENTS
When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.