Um ... what? That's the question undoubtedly in the forefront of many minds as it relates to Antonio Brown, a wide receiver who was heralded as the best in the National Football League not so long ago and has since seen a remarkable fall from grace.
The latest incident comes in Week 17 of the 2021 season where he walked out on his Tampa Bay Buccaneers squad in the middle of their matchup with the New York Jets. Brown could be seen on the sideline taking off his shoulder pads, and walking towards the exit while flashing the peace sign towards what is now his former club as coach Bruce Arians noted postgame that he is "no longer a Buc."
Drama has followed Brown around like a shadow over the last few years and has seen him run through four organizations at this point. In looking at the timeline, which includes noting the rapidity of his character's de-evolution, it's enough to make even the most bombastic NFL players -- past, present and future -- blush with an awkward level of discomfort.
January 2017 - The Facebook Live debacle
It was supposed to be a grand time in the city of Pittsburgh after Brown caught six passes for 108 yards to help push the Steelers past the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Round in an 18-16 nailbiter. Instead, the story became what happened next in the locker room following the win. Brown pulled out his phone and live-streamed the locker room celebration on Facebook -- in violation of league policy. This was also done in spite of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger asking Brown to lay low a bit on social media, and his decision to do the opposite shone a light on head coach Mike Tomlin hurling at least one sharp expletive around about the next opponent to come -- the New England Patriots in the AFC Conference Championship -- for which he issued a formal apology via press conference.
Late January 2017 - Everything's 'fine'
Just one week later, the Steelers took action. Brown was reportedly fined $10,000 by the team for streaming Pittsburgh's locker room celebration, as first reported by Jay Glazer. Tomlin informed his players during a team meeting this week that he was fining Brown. Tomlin disciplined Brown, but the matter was made worse when it was discovered Facebook had paid Brown $244,000 at the start of the 2017 season to create content for them. And so, his fall from grace in Pittsburgh began.
It started with a slow boil at first, though, with the subsequent 2017 season being mostly "quiet" -- aside from Brown battling injury.
December 2018 - We talkin' about practice?
Not yet eliminated from playoff contention and still in the running for the AFC North crown heading into their Week 16 battle with the New Orleans Saints, the Steelers had defeated the rival Patriots one week prior and felt good about finishing the season strong and carrying momentum into the postseason. The perennial Pro Bowler would go on to torch the Saints for 185 yards and two TDs on 14 receptions, but the next few days saw a displeased and apathetic Brown roaming the halls.
A heated dispute with a Roethlisberger during a Wednesday walkthrough escalated to the point where Brown threw a football at the QB, and the wideout opted to then skip the remaining practices leading up to the team's Week 17 battle with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Brown was benched for that game, and while the official team stance was injury-related, the reality could neither have been further from the truth nor hidden anymore from the public eye. The reign of Brown in Pittsburgh was at an end, and the final chapter with the organization was messy. The world would never see Brown in a Steelers' jersey again, and teammates would later reveal the end had been years in the making.
February 2019 - The anti-Valentine
Two days ahead of February 14, Brown took to his beloved social media accounts to both thank the Steelers' fandom and proclaimed it was time to "move on". It's a sentiment the organization itself mirrored to a degree, but still had enough motivation to attempt a repair in the relationship. After all, Brown was still under contract for three more years and coming off of a 1,297-yard season, but the damage had already been done and no amount of Fix-A-Flat was going to reinflate that tire. The sidewall was completely shredded and the Steelers finally admitted it to themselves and everyone else.
March 2019 - For whom the Bell tolls
The Brown decision was a difficult call made that much more challenging by the holdout of All-Pro running back Le'Veon Bell, whom the team was also locked in a battle with. Ultimately, they opted to not place a transition tag on Bell -- allowing him to walk in free agency -- followed by swallowing their pride and beginning the task of looking for trade suitors for Brown.
It was the end of an era in the Steel City.
March 2019 - Trader Joe
As bold and braggadocios as ever, Brown made it clear he was fine never suiting up again for the Steelers. It was essentially, as he went on to describe it, his way or the highway.
"I don't even have to play football if I don't want," he told Jeff Darlington of ESPN. "I don't even need the game. I don't need to prove nothing to anyone. If they wanna play, they going to play by my rules. If not, I don't need to play. Obviously, I want the game, but I don't need the game. It's a difference."
That's not exactly the level of commitment to the sport potential trade suitors want to hear, but the ability of Brown was just too good to ignore for some clubs. With the Tennessee Titans, Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders all entertaining a possible trade for the mercurial wideout, it was the latter who emerged as frontrunner behind the scenes -- albeit it with reservations of their own. The problem in Oakland was they had sent Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 8 via trade, and needed to secure a new No. 1 receiver. It also helped that head coach Jon Gruden was lathering at the mouth just thinking about what Brown could do for quarterback Derek Carr and an offense that ranked near the bottom of the league in passing during the 2018 season.
"[Brown] can run every route you dream up," Gruden said in December preceding free agency. "I say that about other receivers, but he can run double move. He can run by you. He can run crossing routes.
"He's very good after the catch. What's the greatest thing about this man, I've told all of our receivers, if you get a chance to watch him practice, you'll see what unlocks the greatness in him. He's the hardest-working man, I think, in football. Hardest-working player I've ever seen practice.
"I've seen Jerry Rice. I've seen a lot of good ones. But I put Antonio Brown at the top. If there are any young wideouts out there, I'd go watch him practice. You figure out yourself why he's such a good player."
Some of those words would come back to haunt Gruden in ways he had never even dreamed of.
March 2019 - What can Brown do for you?
And so it went, however, the Raiders sent a 2019 third- and fifth-round pick to the Steelers in exchange for Brown only days after his questionable football commitment comments, and what should've been a fresh start rapidly become a bag of rotten fruit.
Brown had three years and about $39 million remaining on the massive contract extension he signed with the Steelers back in 2017. However, the star wide receiver had his eyes set on more. Trading for Brown meant restructuring his contract and adding more money to it -- the Raiders knew that before acquiring him. Shortly after the trade, Brown negotiated a new deal with Oakland that will pay him $50.13 million over the next three seasons. This deal included another $30.13 million in guaranteed money.
May 2019 - The Hell-met
With the start of OTAs came a wind of change for Oakland, a team that finished 4-12 after awarding Gruden a 10-year, $100 million contract to climb down out of the ESPN Monday Night Football booth and return to their organization after a near-decade long hiatus from the game. Gruden and owner Mark Davis then convinced Mike Mayock to leave broadcasting to join them as new General Manager, and the organization felt things had rapidly begun to come together. In actuality, nothing could be further from the truth, and for one key reason:
Brown didn't like his helmet.
In what has become a story pulled right out of the most twisted Edgar Allen Poe poem, Brown was so irate about the NFL's new policy that would essentially decertify his longtime helmet and force him into a new one that he clashed openly with coaches at OTAs over the issue. This included him reportedly storming out of practice and attempting to sneak his old helmet onto the field, going so far as trying to paint it to mirror the mandated helmets in the hopes no one would notice.
Spoiler alert: They noticed, and it didn't end well.
Following several exchanges over the issue, the team broke for summer break and believed HelmetGate was behind them going into training camp.
Late July/Early August 2019 - Frozen
The Raiders were wrong yet again about the mindset of Brown, because he was not done trying to take the field with his old helmet, and again he clashed with the coaches over it. This hadn't been made public just yet, though, and mostly because there was an even more bewildering headline that emerged with the newly-acquired ... well... headache.
The team placed Brown on the Non-Football Injury list with a non-disclosed issue to start training camp, but they removed him immediately thereafter. Questions emerged surrounding the nature of Brown's injury, and the truth turned out to be stranger than fiction.
The bottom of his feet were severely frostbitten after he entered a cryotherapy machine wearing improper footwear and he was sent to a foot specialist to determine the extent of the damage. Initially listed as day-to-day, Brown's absence has since changed to what can only be described as indefinite, with conflicting reports now swirling about that claim he's ghosted the Raiders and their attempts to communicate with him -- with an alternate report claiming there have been discussions and he's expected to return "soon". He took to IG to post a stomach-turning image of the soles of his feet, revealing just how bad they looked.
The [additional] problem is it doesn't truly matter at the moment when his feet heal because it's rumored Brown threatened to never play football at all for the Raiders if he isn't allowed to wear his old helmet. The Raiders have financial recourse if Brown holds true to his threat -- with an arbitration hearing set to take place after he filed a grievance against the NFL -- but nothing could've prepared the Raiders for this circus of events.
This, of course, harkens back to March when he made it clear he doesn't need football, and while the Raiders chose to ignore that -- likely assuming it was simply angst hurled toward the Steelers -- they're finding out it's simply how he feels.
At the end of the day, it's Brown's way or the highway.
"I'm really not into dreams anymore, okay? I'm into f----- nightmares," Gruden famously said on the latest season of HBO's Hard Knocks, speaking on how important the Super Bowl is. "You gotta end somebody's dream."
Unfortunately for him, his own All-Pro receiver might be the one that ends his, and before the two could even roll out of bed.
Early September - The Confrontation
To come back full circle from the initial question in this timeline: Um... what?
As the Raiders prepared to take on the Denver Broncos in the regular season opener, things had mostly fallen quiet on the Brown front. The mercurial wideout had finally located a helmet he could tolerate -- albeit a custom-made one -- and his once frostbitten feet were seemingly more of a nonissue at this point. The would-be silence was shattered in a moment's notice, however, with Adam Schefter of ESPN reporting Brown "got into it" with Mayock in a disagreement that could lead to the team suspending the All-Pro wideout for conduct detrimental to the team. CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora reported that is definitely a possibility:
To make matters worse, it's also being reported Brown went as far as threatening to hit Mayock "in the face," per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, before punting a ball and yelling out "now fine me for that!" While there has been an underlying rift growing between Mayock and Brown -- largely due to every issue mentioned above -- this takes things to rarely seen levels of anarchy by a wide receiver. It's not the first time an NFL player has challenged management, nor is it the most nuclear; but it's certainly in the space of the latter.
With nearly $30 million in guaranteed money on the line with the Raiders' coming decision, Brown's time in Oakland appeared on the bubble.
Fewer than 24 hours later - The Reversal
Fewer than 24 hours after the supposed suspension was reported, Raiders head coach Jon Gruden confirmed on Friday that Brown would not be suspended for Week 1 after Brown gave an emotional apology to his teammates. In fact, Gruden also made it clear the expectation is that Brown will play in Week 1 during Oakland's regular season opener against the Denver Broncos.
In addition to the Gruden news, multiple ex-players came out and gave their take on Brown, with Danny Woodhead siding with the Raiders, Terrell Owens imploring Brown to "take some steps back" and former teammate Ryan Clark saying he and Troy Polamalu were livid at Brown for his behavior back in 2012.
Later that night - "Ain't No More Games"
When the dust settled Friday evening, it appeared the Antonio Brown saga was finally over, and the receiver would be on the field for Week 1, something that seemed impossible at times during the week. Then Antonio Brown posted a nearly two-minute video to his YouTube feed that appeared to feature a private phone call with Gruden where the Raiders coach appears to tell the receiver to "Please stop this (explicit) and just play football," among other things.
You can see the full transcript of the video here.
Gruden apparently didn't mind the video, according to a report by Chris Mortensen:
But ...
The next morning - "Release me"
On Saturday morning, the saga took its next twist, with Antonio Brown posting on Instagram, "You are gonna piss a lot of people off when you start doing what's best for you," along with a comment that implored the Raiders to release him.
Moments after, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the team fined Brown more than $200,000 and voided $29.125 million of his guarantees, with CBS Sports NFL insider Jason La Canfora confirming the report of the voiding of his guarantees and adding more details:
Later on Saturday, the Raiders honored his request and released the receiver.
The Raiders, they turn to their other options at receiver in what's expected to be a rebuilding year.
Welcome to the Patriots
Just after 5 p.m. on Saturday, Antonio Brown announced on Instagram and Twitter that he was signing with the New England Patriots.
AB is accused of sexual assault and rape, allegations he denies
The Brown saga took a turn when a lawsuit filed in the Southern District of Florida by physical trainer Britney Taylor claimed that Brown sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions over the last three years, including one "forcible" rape. Taylor, a former gymnast who attended Central Michigan at the same time as Brown and met the wide receiver there, filed a lawsuit claiming Brown sexually assaulted her on three different occasions from June 2017 through May 2018. A copy of the lawsuit can be found here.
Since the lawsuit was filed, Brown has released his own statement via his lawyer, denying "each and every allegation in the lawsuit." The Patriots also released a statement, saying that the team "takes these allegations very seriously" and that the NFL is planning to investigate the accusations.
This remains an ongoing investigation.
Brown makes his Patriots debut in Week 2 vs. Miami
In spite of the ongoing investigation into the civil suit filed against him, Brown suited up for the Patriots in Week 2 against the Dolphins. In his first action with Tom Brady and New England, Brown racked up four receptions for 56 yards and a touchdown. At one point, the Brady-Brown rapport looked like it had been several years in the making when the duo connected on three consecutive passes before the veteran quarterback found him for the score.
Patriots release Brown prior to Week 3
Just when you thought New England might be in line for their next Randy Moss-esque revival story, this tale came crashing to an end. Just hours after head coach Bill Belichick abruptly walked out of a press conference after growing frustrated with questions about Brown, the Patriots decided to release the star wide receiver.
Following his release, the Patriots released the following statement:
"The New England Patriots are releasing Antonio Brown. We appreciate the hard work of many people over the past 11 days, but we feel that it is best to move in a different direction at this time."
Brown confirmed the release on social media, saying, "Thank you for the opportunity (Patriots) #GoWinIt." His agent Drew Rosenhaus also took to social media to release a statement on the matter.
"It's unfortunate things didn't work out with the Patriots," Rosenhaus said. "But Antonio is healthy and is looking forward to his next opportunity in the NFL. He wants to play the game he loves and he hopes to play for another team soon."
2020 offseason
Following his release by New England, Brown publicly mulled retirement on a number of occasions on social media only to change his mind just a few days later. On July 31, 2020, the NFL officially suspended Brown for the first eight week of the 2020 season for multiple violations of the league's personal-conduct policy.
Brown signs with Bucs, helps win Super Bowl LIV
On October 24, 2020, Brown visited with the Buccaneers and signed a one-year deal with the club just three days later. He was reinstated by the league on Nov. 3 of that year and made his Bucs debut on Sunday Night Football in Week 9. In eight games played over the regular season, Brown hauled in 45 passes for 483 yards and four touchdowns.
Tampa Bay would eventually advance to Super Bowl LIV where Brown would prove to be a key figure in the Buccaneers' 31-9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. He finished that game five catches for 22 yards and a touchdown in what resulted in the first Super Bowl title of his career.
Suspended for faking vaccination status
After re-signing with the Buccaneers last offseason, Brown had himself a strong start to the 2021 campaign. Over his first five games played, Brown recorded 418 yards receiving on 29 catches and four touchdowns. He then missed time due to injury before being suspended for three games by the NFL for violating the league's COVID-19 protocols by misrepresenting his vaccination status.
While there was some question as to whether or not the Buccaneers would bring Brown back after the suspension, Bruce Arians did note a few weeks ago that it was in the best interest of the team to welcome him back following injuries to Chris Godwin and Mike Evans.
Walks out on Bucs in Week 17
Antonio Brown's final game with the Buccaneers came in Week 17 when he walked out on the team in the middle of their matchup against the New York Jets. In the middle of the third quarter, Brown could be seen taking his uniform off and walking off of the field while flashing the peace sign.
According to Fox Sports' Jay Glazer, Arians tried to get Brown into the game and he refused. Arians again tried to get him in the game and he once more refused, which is when Arians told Brown to leave. Following the game, Arians noted that Brown is "no longer a Buc."