Newsstand News & Rumors

Thursday’s transaction report revealed, after days of uncertainty, the Buccaneers waived Antonio Brown. As the back-and-forth between the parties persists, Brown is no longer a member of the team.

Brown has announced he will undergo ankle surgery, which would certainly make the prospect of a team claiming the mercurial star highly unlikely. A Brown claim would be known by Friday afternoon. Brown was not waived with an injury designation, Greg Auman of The Athletic tweets.

This marks the fourth time in the past two-plus years a team has parted ways with Brown. The Steelers traded him to the Raiders in March 2019, and the Raiders released him after a turbulent training camp. The Patriots released Brown in September 2019, after deploying him in one game. Because the trade deadline has long since passed, Brown is subject to the waiver wire. But he is likely headed back to free agency.

Brown’s latest exit stems from his midgame walkout against the Jets. Although Bruce Arians said immediately after the game Brown was done in Tampa, the Bucs spent days weighing their options on separating from the 12th-year veteran. Part of the delay appeared to center around the prospect of yet another team giving Brown an opportunity. After a Brown’s statement that accused the Bucs of forcing him to play through injury surfaced Wednesday night, the defending champions cut their losses.

Arians countered AB’s assertions Thursday, indicating Brown’s refusal to re-enter Sunday’s Jets matchup took place because he was frustrated about targets.

“He was very upset at halftime about who was getting targeted,” Arians said, via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “Got that calmed down; players took care of that. It started again on the sideline. We called for the personnel group that he had played in the entire game. He refused to go in the game. That’s when I looked back and saw him basically wave off the coach. I then went back, approached him about what was going on. ‘I ain’t playing.’ What’s going on? ‘I ain’t getting the ball.’ That’s when I said, ‘You’re done. Get the eff out of here.'”

The optics of Brown jogging and dancing as he left the field at MetLife Stadium are not great for his stance that injury was behind the dismissal, but he did not practice after aggravating his ankle malady on Dec. 29. Brown nevertheless suited up and caught three of the five passes thrown his way for 26 yards.

The Bucs gave Brown an incentive package that would have guaranteed him $334K by reaching 50 catches. That was merely Brown’s lowest-tier incentive, but it became relevant after he missed nine games because of contracting COVID-19, being suspended due to his faked vaccine card, and the ankle injury. Brown collected a $2MM signing bonus and $1.1MM in base salary this season, but issues staying on the field cost him incentive dollars.

Interestingly, Bucs GM Jason Licht added that Brown asked last week, despite coming off a three-game suspension, for his $2MM in remaining incentives to be guaranteed. The Bucs, understandably, declined. Licht also said Brown did not communicate his ankle was bothering him pregame or during the game (Twitter links via ESPN’s Adam Schefter). Regardless of how we got here, this marks yet another messy exit for Brown, who was on a first-ballot Hall of Fame path before his Steelers divorce.

Brown’s intention to undergo surgery stands to end his season. This release comes barely a week after Arians praised AB for growing while in Tampa. Arians had said Brown being cut because of the fake vaccination card was in play but agreed to take him back after his suspension ended. While the Bucs are the latest team to regret taking the gamble on Brown’s talent — a move Arians initially resisted before Tom Brady‘s preference won out — the former All-Pro played well, for the most part, when available this season. Based on recent history, it would not shock if Brown resurfaced elsewhere in 2022. But his age (34 this summer) and obvious baggage will work against him.

Thursday, 11:14 am: As reported by Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Bucs have officially released Brown. An official team statement reads in part, “While Antonio did receive treatment on his ankle and was listed on the injury report the week leading up to last Sunday’s game, he was cleared to play by our medical team prior to the start of the game and at no point during the game did he indicate to our medical personnel that he could not play.” It adds that Brown has not complied with numerous attempts by the club to have his ankle evaluated by a specialist. Schefter further reports that Brown was “agitated” over a lack of targets at halftime in the game, and needed calming down at that point. In a press conference, Arians recalled the situation, saying that Brown told him, “I ain’t playing; I ain’t getting the ball”, to which Arians responded, “You’re done. Get the f- out of here”. 

The move was widely expected to take place at some point, and brings the receiver’s time in Tampa Bay to an end once and for all. Brown is now officially on waivers, though it is highly unlikely he gets claimed, as he has stated he plans on having surgery on the ankle.

Monday, 10:49pm: According to an interview with NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, people close to Antonio Brown are claiming that Brown didn’t truly believe his ankle was was healthy enough to play on. Brown did miss practice Thursday and Friday leading up to the game due to his ankle. He apparently loudly made it known at halftime that he was unhappy. Arians called for him to enter the game and, when Brown refused, he was told he was done and Brown’s antics ensued. This paints the situation in a slightly different light. While Brown’s exit was clearly unprofessional, this record of events paints Brown as a victim looking out for his own health and provides a bit of reasoning to support his actions, however overblown they may have been.

This has led to a situation wherein the Buccaneers are talking to the league office about “procedural steps” and a proper “designation” for Brown, as reported by Mike Florio of NBC Sports. This poses a number of speculations as to the intentions of Tampa Bay. This could mean there is some truth to Brown’s side of the story and the Buccaneers don’t want to waive an ailing player. It could mean that Tampa Bay is worried about Brown hitting waivers and popping up on another roster in the postseason. It could just mean that the Buccaneers are doing their homework to make sure they have their bases covered when they do release the troubled receiver. Stay tuned in, and we’ll be on top of whatever result comes out of central Florida.

Monday, 5:00pm: The Buccaneers did not officially release Antonio Brown today, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). While the move is still anticipated, the organization is having “ongoing discussions with the NFL” about how to proceed.

Sunday, 3:17pm: Antonio Brown is no longer a member of the Buccaneers, head coach Bruce Arians announced. This comes just minutes after Brown took himself out of Sunday’s game against the Jets and undressed en route to the tunnel.

The Buccaneers have put up with a lot of AB drama over the last two years, but this was clearly the final straw. With Chris Godwin sidelined, the multiple-time Pro Bowl wide receiver would have been in line for plenty of playoff targets. Instead, despite the pleas of Mike Evans and O.J. Howard, he bailed on his team.

Brown had just three grabs for 26 yards before his self-imposed exit, but he dominated last week with ten catches for 101 yards against the Panthers. There will be no more of that — his 2021 will end with 39 catches for 519 yards and four touchdowns across six games. It’s also worth noting that Brown was on pace to collect an extra $1MM in bonuses. All AB had to do was record eight more catches, 55 more receiving yards, and one more receiving touchdown.

Brown, a seven-time Pro Bowler, missed much of the year with an ankle injury, followed by a three-game ban for using a phony vaccination card. At one point in time, the league considered a 6-8 game ban for Brown. The Buccaneers also discussed the possibility of extending Brown’s hiatus beyond the suspension, but ultimately relented after Godwin’s ACL tear.

Even without Brown, the Bucs went on to beat the Jets and advance to 12-4. Their depth will be tested even more as they head into the postseason without AB, Godwin, and (possibly) starting running back Leonard Fournette.