Play.
Antonio Brown has played his last snap.
Antonio Brown has run out of room for forgiveness from teams despite his elite skill set. 1:45.
9:32 PM
Antonio Brown spoke for the first time since leaving the game against the New York Jets on Sunday, saying he was forced to play on an injured ankle that will require surgery.
The receiver said in a lengthy statement released Wednesday night that he had broken bone fragments and a torn ligament from the bone.
Brown accused the Buccaneers of mischaracterizing his behavior on the field as a mental health issue, rather than a refusal to play due to pain.
When reached later Wednesday night, the Buccaneers did not have any comment.
Brown was on the field for 26 plays before he left the game. He threw his shirt and gloves into the stands after being upset on the sideline. He waved to the fans as he went to the locker room after he ran across the end zone.
After the game, Bruce Arians denied knowing that Brown was injured. "No, Brown didn't tell me he was injured," he said.
According to Sean Burstyn, the receiver's attorney, Brown told the training staff that he was too hurt to continue in the game and that he had discussed his ankle with the coach and the training staff.
In his statement, Brown said the same thing.
I sat on the sideline and my coach shouted at me, 'What's wrong with you?' What is wrong with you? I told him it was my ankle. He knew that. Brown said that it was well documented and that they had discussed it. He ordered me to get on the field. I told the coach I couldn't. He did not call for medical attention. He yelled at me, 'You're done!', while running his finger across his throat. If I didn't play hurt, he told me, I was done with the team.
Even though the team has yet to officially release him, Brown was no longer a member of the team.
Brown's statement was in its entirety.
I would like to thank my teammates, the fans, and the Bucs. I had difficulties that could have ended my career, but the Bucs helped me get back to football. I will always appreciate that we worked together to resolve those difficulties. Being a part of a Super Bowl champion team is a dream come true.
I make mistakes. I have positive influences around me and I'm working on myself. I don't shy away from playing hard on the field. No one can say that I didn't give it my all.
I relented to pressure from my coach to play injured because of my commitment to the game. The staff injected me with a powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller that the NFLPA has warned against and I gave it my all for the team. I played until it was clear that I couldn't use my ankle to perform my responsibilities. The pain was very bad. My coach shouted 'What's wrong with you' when he came up to me on the sideline. What is wrong with you? I told him it was my ankle. He knew that. We had discussed it and it was documented. He ordered me to go on the field. I told the coach I couldn't. He did not call for medical attention. He yelled at me, 'You're done!', while running his finger across his throat. If I didn't play hurt, he told me I was done with the team.
I didn't quit. I was cut. I was still with my brothers. I was thrown out. Being fired on the sideline for an injury was worse. Then came their spin. The coach denied that he knew about my ankle. That's not accurate. He and I exchanged texts days before the game where he acknowledged my injury, and he knew I missed several games with it. I was on the injury list. The GM acknowledged after the game in text messages to my camp that I told him about my ankle pain on Sunday.
We were losing to the Jets and it was frustrating for all of us. I could not play football on that ankle. I left the field. Launching from the line and taking hits is different from jogging off the field with a rush of emotions going through your mind. There was a triggering event that I am reflecting on. Someone told me that I am not allowed to feel pain. I acknowledge my past. My past does not make me a second class citizen. When I am in pain, my past doesn't affect my right to be heard.
They cut me first. They are cageing me now. The team did not ask how I felt or how I was getting to the bottom of it, but they did send a false narrative to my camp. They told us not to spin this in any other way. I have things I need to work on. The worst part of this has been the repeated attempt by the Bucs to portray this as a random incident. They are telling people that I walked off and was cut off. No. No. No. I went home after I was cut first. I took my jersey off because I refused to wear their brand on my body.
"As part of their ongoing cover-up, they are acting like I wasn't cut and now demanding that I see a doctor of their choice to examine my ankle." They did not know that I had an urgent magnetic resonance on my ankle on Monday. It shows broken bone fragments in my ankle, as well as a torn ligament from the bone. The bone is bulging from the outside. That can be repaired. Two top surgeons in NYC have read theMRI. I was ordered to show up to a junior doctor at the hospital for another opinion after I scheduled a surgery at the hospital. What a joke. They're playing like I wasn't cut, giving me a surprise attack 'order' to show up to another doctor with no reasonable notice, and setting this whole thing up as a basis to cut me because what they did on Sunday was not legit. Sorry, GM. I was told to go to the hospital by the Top Doc.
I like the fans of the Bucs. I do. Everyone who believed in me and showed me grace was my teammates. I gave everything I had on the field. The organization needs to be cleaned up. I don't understand how people who are concerned about my mental health can do things to me in private.
I'll be back to full strength once my surgery is over, and I'm looking forward to next season. Business will be booming!
In a statement on Wednesday night, Burstyn said that Antonio never faked an injury in his life. People are pushing false rumors that the ankle injury that happened Sunday was caused by mental health issues. Why would they start a campaign of deception? To avoid the risk of injury for the sake of winning a game.
