How’s Bucs Locker Room After Antonio Brown Release? Bruce Arians Explains

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have one more regular-season game to play — this Sunday against the Carolina Panthers at Raymond James Stadium — before embarking on a playoff run they hope will end with a second straight Super Bowl victory.

It’s been easy to lose sight of that in recent days, with Antonio Brown’s sideline tantrum casting a dark cloud over Tampa Bay’s Week 17 comeback win. But head coach Bruce Arians didn’t necessarily feel the need to address the Bucs’ locker room Thursday after Brown’s official release.

“Our team’s great,” Arians told reporters when asked about his message to the club. “Our team knows the truth. They know what happened. Our guys are fine. They’re ready to play Carolina.”

Brown removed his pads and exited the field shirtless Sunday at MetLife Stadium, a decision the wide receiver said stemmed from Arians trying to force him to play through an ankle injury. Arians denied those allegations and shared his side of the story Thursday after the Bucs issued a statement regarding Brown’s release.

According to Arians, Brown complained about the number of targets he received Sunday — his second game back from a three-game suspension for misrepresenting his COVID-19 vaccination status — and caused a stir at halftime but never asked the medical staff about his ankle. Thus, when Brown refused to reenter the game in the third quarter, Arians told him to “get the F out of here.”

Arians made it perfectly clear after Sunday’s game — a 28-24 win over the New York Jets — that Brown was “no longer a Buc.” It took several days for the transaction to become official, during which time Brown attended a Brooklyn Nets vs. Memphis Grizzlies game at Barclays Center, responded to Cameo requests, released a lengthy statement, revealed text messages between him and Arians, shared screenshots from an exchange with Tom Brady’s trainer, Alex Guerrero, and promoted his music career.

“It was just, with the league, what you can do, what you can’t do — that’s all the lawyers and the league office, with (Bucs general manager Jason Licht),” Bruce Arians said Thursday of why it took so long for the franchise to terminate Brown’s contract. “So I don’t have any part of that.”

A contract dispute also might have played a role in Brown’s outburst, as Bucs GM Jason Licht told ESPN’s Adam Schefter the seven-time Pro Bowl selection last week requested that the $2 million in remaining incentives on his deal for this season be guaranteed. The team declined the request.