Antonio Brown claims Bucs treated him ‘like a dog’, gives more details about why he ran off field vs. Jets

Back in January of 2022, NFL fans bore witness to one of the strangest things that ever happened on a football field. With his team trailing 24-10 in the third quarter, then-Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown stripped off his jersey and shoulder pads and ran off the field and back into the locker room.

Strange details about the incident came out almost immediately in the wake of Brown being released from the team, which itself happened swiftly following the game. At the time, Brown claimed he felt he was too injured to re-enter the game, and head coach Bruce Arians disagreed, which resulted in Arians telling Brown to “get out.”

About a year and a half later, Brown is offering more details. During an appearance on Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill’s podcast, Brown explained his side of the story. 

“Tom [Brady] called me like ‘Yo this week man the Jets man, they sweet man imma hit you with like 10 to 12 [targets],'” Brown said. “So, he gonna gas me up so you know me, that’s all I need to hear like yo you gonna throw me the ball, this is like me saying like I got a new crib like you know me, you know what I’m saying.”

Brown decided upon hearing that, that he was going to play in the game despite an injury that kept him out of practice. 

“We (were) about to play the Jets and I am already hurt,” he said. “So I took pictures to send to the coach and told him ‘Look, If we’re going to win the Super Bowl I’m going to need to take these last two weeks to recover up so I can give you my best when we go to win the Super Bowl,’ but the coach called me saying that I wasn’t resting. So then Tom (Brady) called me and told me he’d hit me with 10-12 (passes), so he gassed me up, and that’s all I needed to hear. But you know as a player, if you f—ing up but your team needs you then you just suck it up for the game and for the team. I already know they were being fake to me the whole time I was there. I got suspended (for breaking Covid-19 rules) and I came back and they had some guys hurt, so they wanted to get everything out of me — they treated me like I’m a dog.”

When Brown didn’t get the targets he felt he was promised during the Jets game, he decided that he wasn’t going back onto the field. “You don’t want to throw me the ball and you making me like I’m crazy, so, I was like, ‘I’m crazy, f— all you motherf—ers, I’m out of here.'” Brown said. 

So, there you have it. At least, from one man’s perspective.