If Antonio Brown wants to return to football in 2019, he's likely going to have to wait until the NFL completes its investigation. Of course, the biggest problem for Brown there is that the league still doesn't seem to have any timeline for when that investigation might be completed. 

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was asked about Brown's case Wednesday, and he gave a vague answer that didn't really clear anything up as far as when the receiver, who was released by the Patriots after one game in September, might be able to return to the NFL.  

"We're still working at that," Goodell said of the case. "I will probably be getting an update when I get back to New York. Our folks have been working diligently at that. When we reach a conclusion, I'll obviously let you know."

The NFL is currently investigating multiple accusations that have been levied against Brown since the beginning of the 2019 season. Not only is Brown facing a sexual assault lawsuit in Florida, but the receiver has also been accused of sending intimidating text messages to a woman who had accused him of sexual misconduct in a Sports Illustrated story that was published last month. 

In the lawsuit, Brown is accused of sexually assaulting a female acquaintance, Britney Taylor, on three separate occasions between June 2017 and May 2018. Although Brown's legal team has admitted that the two had a sexual relationship, his camp maintains that everything was consensual between Brown and Taylor. 

Although the league has yet to punish Brown, it did warn teams that he could be placed on the commissioner's exempt list if he ends up getting signed. 

"If he is signed by a club, such placement may become appropriate at any time depending on the status of the investigation," the NFL said in a statement on Sept. 20. 

The reason the threat of the commissioner's exempt list could deter a team from signing him is because it means the team would have to pay him, but he wouldn't be allowed to play. Brown doesn't seem to be happy with the pace of the investigation, because he sent out a tweet earlier this week that seemed to be directed at the NFL. 

In a tweet sent out on Oct. 15, Brown only wrote two words.

If that tweet is directed at the NFL, it wouldn't be surprising, and that's because Brown has made it clear that he wants to return to football. Not only did he kind of ask the Patriots to re-sign him last week, but the receiver has apparently indicated that he'll be ready to sign with a team as soon as the NFL's investigation is over. 

According to ESPN, Brown has decided he's not going to sign with a team until the league has cleared him, which means the free agent receiver is basically in NFL purgatory until the investigation is complete. 

As for the tweet, it came out just days after Brown recorded a video for Instagram live saying he wanted to return. 

"If I can ever get back in the game, I gotta, so I'm going to get back to work," Brown said. "To all my real AB supporters, just know that I'm doing everything in my power [to return]. I'm making God proud: I'm in school, I"m training, I'm visiting high schools. Doing everything to get back. Whatever I can do to get back in the game, I gotta [do it]."

Although it's unclear when the NFL might complete its investigation, it almost certainly won't be happening in the next week or two. According to ESPN, the NFL still hasn't interviewed Brown, and it's hard to imagine the league clearing him or handing down a punishment until they've actually had a chance to talk to him.