Could fake vaccination card saga cause a rift between Antonio Brown and Tom Brady?
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers knew Antonio Brown would miss a few more games with his ankle injury, but no one could have seen his recent suspension coming. Tom Brady is currently without one of his top veteran targets until at least Week 16.
Brown was handed a three-game suspension for having a fake COVID-19 vaccination card. He claims to be vaccinated now, but his initial card was not a real one. The saga is a bizarre one and is yet another example of how much drama Brown can bring to an organization.
.@Realrclark25 thinks Tom Brady needs Antonio Brown to make a Super Bowl run.
"Antonio Brown is as important to Tom Brady and the success of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense as [any other Bucs star]." https://t.co/lzbxqul3Yp
Brady has always been a supporter of Brown dating back to their brief stint together with the New England Patriots. He then got Brown to sign for Tampa Bay and put his faith in the receiver. Will this fake vaccination card saga change anything?
Tom Brady has always backed Antonio Brown
While this suspension does serve as a potential distraction, it should not shake how Brady views Brown. The quarterback has been adamant about his support for Brown since the receiver joined the team last year.
A lot of people have wondered why Tom Brady has not only befriended Antonio Brown but gone to bat for him and others like him, who have troubled pasts and baggage. So I asked Brady how he navigates those relationships.
I think this answers a lot of questions. https://t.co/KcvboiwCg5
Brady showed his support for Brown at a time when the receiver was dealing with a series of legal issues after his saga with the Raiders. Brady continued to stick by him once Brown was let go by the Patriots as well.
So it would be a shock if Brady suddenly lost faith in Brown over this, especially since Brown is reportedly vaccinated anyway. So it's not like Brown was openly putting his teammates at risk. Or at least that is what he claims to be true.
Fans can also see that Brady's support is genuine because Brown is not the top receiving option on the roster. He is a bonus behind both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. But Brady continuing to throw his support behind Brown speaks volumes about how he feels.
Could there even be a tiny rift? That may even be a stretch because Brown is set to miss a few weeks of action anyway with his ankle injury. Seeing how forgiving Brady is should mean he continues to send his well wishes to his teammate as he recovers from his injury.
The only way Brady may ever shift his tone is if Brown does something off the field that results in him missing a playoff game or the Super Bowl. That may be what it takes for Brady to finally have to give up his support for Brown. However, that would be extreme and there is no reason to believe that will happen to Brown. This fake vaccination card is a months-old issue that was just discovered.
Brown now has three weeks, without pay, to get healthy and return for the end of the season and the playoffs. If he can do that, there is no reason why his connection with Brady would suffer.