Arians says Buccaneers management mulling how to deal with Brown

Antonio Brown remains on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ roster, but coach Bruce Arians says management is dealing with the issue.

Bruce Arians says the Bucs will part ways with Antonio Brown but any delay is just a matte of the front office determining which transaction to utilize.

— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) January 5, 2022

“It’s a management decision with what’s happening now,” Arians said on Wednesday.

Arians said Brown was “no longer a Buc” on Sunday after the receiver removed his jersey and left the field shirtless during the third quarter of Tampa Bay’s road win over the New York Jets.

Rick Stroud of The Tampa Bay Times reports the Bucs are considering several options.

One possibility is placing him on injured reserve, though Arians said Monday that Brown’s ankle injury was not the factor in him deciding to leave the field. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network has reported Brown’s camp said the dispute was caused by the receiver telling the team he could not re-enter the game because of the injury.

Stroud said another possibility could be classifying Brown’s actions as conduct detrimental to the team — which would prevent the Bucs from owing him any money.

Stroud says the other option is for the Bucs to deactivate Brown for the remainder of the season.

If the Bucs were to release Brown, another team could pick him up on waivers.

Meanwhile, Brown has responded to at least a couple of requests on Cameo, a social messaging platform.

When asked about Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer in one request, he offered a few words on his own situation.

“I’m trying to figure out my own team, my squad, what I’m doing, where I’m going,” he said.

The Buccaneers, who have clinched a playoff spot, host the Carolina Panthers on Sunday in the regular-season finale.

[relatedlinks]