Antonio Brown Released a Statement on His Meltdown, Says Bucs Injected Him With a Dangerous Painkiller

We all saw Antonio Brown lose it on the sidelines against the Jets and run off the field without his jersey and pads on.  What we don't know is what exactly led up to that moment.

The Buccaneers and head coach Bruce Arians have their version of what happened.  And so does Brown.  Arians claims he asked Brown multiple times to go into the game and when Brown refused he asked him to leave.

Brown released a statement, through his attorney, giving his version of events.  According to Brown it was the ankle injury that he's been dealing with this season that prevented him from re-entering the game.

In addition to that Brown claimed that the Bucs staff injected him with a "powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller" to get him on the field.

"Because of my commitment to the game, I relented to pressure directly from my coach to play injured.  Despite the pain, I suited up, the staff injected me with what I now know was a powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller that the NFLPA has warned against using, and I gave it my all for the team."

Statement from Antonio Brown via his attorney ⁦@seanburstyn⁩: pic.twitter.com/pJ3VGFBjSy

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 6, 2022

Whatever led up to the meltdown almost doesn't matter.  I mean it does, but all anyone is going to remember is how he decided to leave the field.  If he would have remained on the sidelines maybe Arians would have calmed down and Brown would still be a member of the team.

As it is, Brown is still on the roster as the Bucs figure out how to cut him, but he's not going to play for them again.  He's having ankle surgery and looking forward to another opportunity next season.  We'll see if Brown gets that next opportunity.