"Got to take advantage of opportunities" - Antonio Brown opens up on possibility of NFL return
Former NFL receiver Antonio Brown has recently been making the rounds promoting his new album titled "Paradigm."
It's a far cry from the days of the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver hauling in touchdowns on Sunday afternoons. However, Brown seems to be enjoying life as a rapper.
TMZ recently caught up with the former NFL star and asked him about the possibility of him playing again in the league. Here's what Antonio Brown had to say.
"A lot of room left to play. It's a lot of growth left but in the meantime, you have got to take advantage of opportunities."
It sounds as if Brown is merely bidding his time with music until he gets another opportunity to once again prove himself in the NFL.
Will Antonio Brown play in the NFL next season?
The last time NFL fans saw Antonio Brown on a football field was during a Week 17 game between the Buccaneers and the New York Jets earlier this year. During the game, Brown, now formerly of the Bucs, became enraged after being told to re-enter the football game despite feeling physically unable to do so.
Antonio Brown has a meltdown at the hand of the #Jets and #BraxtonBerrios https://t.co/RGhSYpyrOu
The receiver then began to shed his uniform, toss it into the stands at MetLife Stadium and ran off the field and into the tunnel. Soon thereafter, he was released by the team.
Bruce Arians speaks to the media following the release of Antonio Brown. https://t.co/HMYir6rhX9
If you think that NFL owners will frown upon such behavior and never allow Antonio Brown back into the league, think again. The NFL has long been notorious for allowing players to play as long as their production helps their team.
Brown is perhaps the best example of that. The former receiver made a name for himself as an All-Pro player with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2010 to 2018. Despite such success with the team, he was ultimately traded away due to behavior issues within the organization.
His next team, the Las Vegas Raiders, also ended up letting him go before he had a chance to play a single regular-season game. Brown's brief tenure there included missing meetings, refusing to wear a new league-mandated helmet and getting into a heated discussion with team GM Mike Mayock.
He was soon released after only a few months and signed by the New England Patriots. The former Pro-Bowl receiver played one game for the Patriots in Week Two of the 2019 season before becoming embroiled in a far more serious controversy.
Allegations of sexual assault and of sending intimidating text messages to an accuser caused the Patriots to release him immediately after his only game.
The Buccaneers signed Brown in October 2020 but it came with a caveat from then-head coach Bruce Arians. He initially told reporters in March 2020 on a radio show that adding the receiver to his team was "not going to happen."
Antonio Brown ultimately ended up with the Buccaneers and is now going strong in his rap career. But don't be surprised if another team comes calling for his services because he will be an option as long as he is still productive on the field regardless of what happens off it.