Top 3 NFL player-coach relationships that turned sour ft. Antonio Brown and Bruce Arians
Antonio Brown and Bruce Arians are hardly the first player-coach pair to fall out and they will certainly not be the last. NFL players and coaches both require to be mentally strong to succeed in the NFL. In such cases, disagreements between people with strong personalities can often arise.
In the case of Antonio Brown and Bruce Arians, though, the situation seems to have deteriorated to a point where both are giving conflicting information. Other player-coach relationships have turned sour due to the lack of success on the field or the generally overbearing demeanor of a person.
Antonio Brown and Bruce Arians merely the latest in some classic player-coach feuds
#1 - Antonio Brown and Bruce Arians, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Antonio Brown was given a chance by Bruce Arians and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers despite his many off-field issues that many coaches would have avoided. Antonio Brown rewarded that trust handsomely in the 2020 NFL season as he became a pivotal player as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won the Super Bowl.
Unlike the #Steelers, #Raiders and #Patriots, all of which had to deal with this type of craziness from Antonio Brown on his way out [and much worse]
At least the #Bucs were rewarded with Brown helping win a Super Bowl.
But with Antonio Brown, controversy is never far away and Bruce Arians found it out to his own cost. This season, Antonio Brown became embroiled in a fake vaccination card controversy that Bruce Arians ultimately forgave. But in last week's game against the Jets, the player-coach relationship went beyond repair.
Bruce Arians explains in detail what happened with Antonio Brown on Sunday.
https://t.co/1g45Ib9to1
According to Bruce Arians, Antonio Brown refused to partake in the play when told because he felt he was not getting enough targets, especially considering that he was due a bonus if he achieved certain thresholds. According to Antonio Brown, Bruce Arians was forcing him to play despite having an ankle injury. Who is at fault depends on which version you believe, but in both cases the situation became irretrievable.
Statement from Antonio Brown via his attorney @seanburstyn: https://t.co/pJ3VGFBjSy
#2 - John Elway and Dan Reeves, Denver Broncos
Two of the most famous people associated with the Denver Broncos never had the best player-coach camaraderie. Dan Reeves was the coach who got John Elway at the Denver Broncos, but soon the young quarterback started having philosophical disagreements with his coach.
John Elway wanted more of a passing game and felt Dan Reeves' style was holding him back. Despite the player-coach differences, they reached three Super Bowls together, losing them all. After the 1992 season, John Elway effectively asked the franchise to choose between him and Dan Reeves, and the ax fell on the coach.
John Elway would go on to win two Super Bowls at the Denver Broncos after Dan Reeves' departure, the final one against his old coach who at the time was leading the Atlanta Falcons. But in Dan Reeves' recent passing, it seemed that time had healed a lot of old wounds.
The football world lost a heckuva coach and man today in Dan Reeves.
Dan was a winner and I owe a lot to him.
My heart goes out to Pam and the entire Reeves family. https://t.co/d3cUk9ZWxT
#3 - Terry Bradshaw and Chuck Noll, Pittsburgh Steelers
Perhaps the player-coach feud with the most surprising results was that of Terry Bradshaw and Chuck Noll. Terry Bradshaw was the starting quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers dynasty that won four Super Bowls and was drafted by coach Chuck Noll.
But as Terry Bradshaw revealed after his retirement, he never took kindly to the way Chuck Noll treated him. He was incessantly rough and overbearing, according to Bradshaw, and did not inspire any respect in him. But despite their player-coach relationship, they had a winning formula. On a personal level, though, the rift never healed with Terry Bradshaw giving Chuck Noll's funeral a pass.