Antonio Brown goes on the offensive to prove the Bucs knew he was injured heading into Sunday’s game against the Jets.
On Wednesday night, Brown released a statement via his attorney Sean Burstyn saying Bucs coaches cut him off on the sidelines when he refused to return to play because he felt he was too injured to play.
“I sat on the sidelines and my coach came up to me, very upset, and yelled, ‘What’s wrong with you? What’s wrong?’ I said, ‘It’s my ankle.’ But he knew it. It was well documented and we had discussed it, ”said Brown. “He then ordered me to enter the field. I said, ‘Coach, I can’t.’ He did not seek medical attention. Instead, he shouted at me, “YOU ARE DONE! As he ran his finger over her throat. The coach told me that if I didn’t play injured, then I was done with the Bucs.
Why would they embark on a campaign of false cover-up? To avoid the responsibility of ignoring the risk of serious injury to win a game. Antonio has thought about it for days and has prepared a heartfelt statement that he will release soon. 2/6
– Sean Burstyn (@seanburstyn) January 6, 2022
We all know that the NFL does not tolerate an order to play for players who are suffering or at risk of serious injury. Additionally, the injury and the location of the visible bone fragment prevented Antonio Brown from being able to perform the type of football moves he is famous for. 4/6
– Sean Burstyn (@seanburstyn) January 6, 2022
On Thursday morning, Brown posted a text message between himself and Arians talking about the injury ahead of Sunday’s game.
After Sunday’s game, Arians told media that Brown did not tell anyone he was injured while on the sidelines.
Bruce Arians said Antonio Brown didn’t tell anyone he was hurt, they had a conversation, but Brown left on his own. The Arians did not say he told Brown to leave.
“We had a conversation and he left the field.”pic.twitter.com/LD77akl73H
– Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) January 3, 2022
The Arians face the media on Thursday afternoon and will surely be forced to answer many questions about Antonio Brown.