Antonio Brownis “no longer” a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to head coach Bruce Arians.
The announcement came after the wide receiver, 33,made a scenein the middle of the Buccaneers' Week 17 win over the New York Jets on Sunday.
During the third quarter, Brown was seen tearing off the top half of his uniform, beforesprinting onto the fieldin the middle of the game and flashing a “peace out” sign to the crowd as he exited through the tunnel.
After suddenly leaving Sunday’s game, Brownshared a photoon social media of himself taken earlier in the day with the caption, “Super Gremlin.”
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Arians, 69,did not further addressBrown and his actions on the field during his postgame press conference.
“That’s the end of the story,” he told reporters. “I just want to talk about the guys that went out there and won the game.”
Elsa/Getty
After the press conference, Arians told FOX Sports insider Jay Glazer that he requested Brown enter the game, but the wide receiver refused. The coach then allegedlytold Brown to “get out"before the athlete tore off his jersey and padding and threw them into the stands.
When asked if he saw Brown rip off his uniform, Arians said, “Yeah, I did,” adding, “Never seen anything like it in all my years.”
In an interview with FOX Sports after the game, tight endRob Gronkowskidenied knowing details about the incident.
“I don’t know anythingabout that,” he said. “I was out there smashing my head verse 300-pound defenders, catch passes, break tackles, so I had no time to see what happened on the sidelines.”
Meanwhile, Bucs quarterbackTom Brady, who helped bring Brown to Tampa Bay in 2020, weighed in on the incident following the game.
“That’s obviously adifficult situation,” Brady, 44, told reporters, adding that he hopes Brown will ultimately find the help that he needs.
Antonio Brown.Mike Ehrmann/Getty
“We all love him. We care about him deeply,” he continued. “We want to see him being at his best, and unfortunately, it won’t be with our team.”
Back in February, Brady opened up about hisrelationship with Brown, who is notorious for getting in trouble with NFL teams and the league. (In December 2021, the NFLsuspended Brown for three gamesfor allegedly misrepresenting his COVID-19 vaccination status.)
“Antonio and I connected right away,” Brady said prior to Super Bowl LV about his first time meeting the receiver, per WEEI.com. He noted that Brown had “a great love for the game” and had “made incredible strides” in the 12 months leading up to the title game.
At the time, Brown also addressed his relationship with Brady. “A lot of his help has helped me get to where I am at right now,” Brown told reporters. “Helped me grow as a person — physically, mentally, emotionally — and put some things into perspective. Sharpening my tools, making sure I have plans [to reach] my goals and not letting any outside noise diffuse that plan.”
source: people.com
