What did Antonio Brown say before staging walkout vs Jets?
Antonio Brown's walkout has been the talk of the NFL since it happened during the contest between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New York Jets.
For those who missed it, Brown took off his shoulder pads and shirt and tossed them in the stands before walking to the locker room while the game was happening.
On his way out, he did some jumping jacks and waved to the crowd.
Why did Antonio Brown ditch his team?
According to Ian Rapoport, Brown disagreed about the status of his health. He had been cleared by the medical staff to return to the game but Brown allegedly didn't feel well due to his ankle injury.
The coaching staff asked him to get in the game. Brown refused and ultimately took his shoulder pads off and jogged off the field.
Based on Rapoport's report, the walk-off was a climax to a building sense of frustration between the wide receiver and organization.
Between the suspension for a fake vaccination card and the personality clashes between him and the coaching staff, the walk-off was inevitable.
It may not have needed to happen in the game, but asking Brown to play injured seems to have been the final straw.
From @GMFB: The relationship between the #Bucs and Antonio Brown was quietly going the wrong way for some time. Then he refused to enter the game and was tossed from the sidelines. A look at how it all went so wrong… https://t.co/3TcfmXYho7
Brown appeared healthy enough in pre-game warmups and during the game. However, he maintains that he wasn't healthy enough to play.
After the outburst, Arians said in his post-game press conference that Brown is "no longer a Buc." Meaning, Brown's time in with the Buccaneers is over and the wide receiver will likely be officially cut very soon.
“He is no longer a Buc”
Well Bruce Arians puts the Antonio Brown issue to bed real quick https://t.co/pwKpQJhznW
It is unclear if the NFL will leverage another suspension on Brown or if there are any clauses prohibiting him from going to another team. At this time, Brown may not be healthy enough to play.
Therefore, if he lands with another team in the coming weeks, he may not be able to play immediately.
Brown has a unique opportunity to convince any Super Bowl contenders to sign him for the playoffs. They'd have two weeks to ease Brown into the playbook.
He could act as a wild card heading into the game and could be the catalyst that leads to a Super Bowl victory.
Brown could have stumbled into the position of a lifetime by choosing a team (assuming he has suitors).
The downside is that after his outburst, he could be seen as a liability for teams and too big of a risk to sign, even at a low price. This season, Brown has caught 42 passes for 545 yards and four touchdowns.
What will happen to Brown? We can only wait and see. The situation is developing rapidly.