Friends? It seems there are several different definitions.
For the past few years, Tom Brady has referred to Antonio Brown as a friend. After Brown’s release from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and his subsequent appearance on the Full Send podcast to tell his side of the story, it seems unlikely the two former New England Patriots will be conversing amicably any time soon.
The Antonio Brown Story Keeps Getting Messier
Brown was released earlier this week after refusing to go into the Week 17 game against the New York Jets. Why was he released? Well, the answer to that question depends on who you ask.
Bucs head coach Bruce Arians said Brown refused to go back into the game because he said he wasn’t getting enough targets. Brown insists he told the Bucs his ankle was too injured to play, and that the team released him for not being willing to play hurt.
In any case, Brown took to the Full Send podcast to take aim at what used to be a solid relationship with Brady. Brown did most of the interview holding a stack of cash like a mock telephone.
Antonio Brown Has Changed His Tune About Tom Brady
Brown was asked why he doesn’t follow Brady on Instagram. This was his response:
“Noting personal man, Tom is actually my friend, one of my close friends,” Brown said. “But you know, some people have a different definition of friend.”
It seems Brown is implying Brady befriended him only based on what he could do on the football field and not on a personal level. Brady played a key role in getting the much-maligned Brown a roster spot with the Patriots back in 2019. He played in one game before he was released after he was accused of sexual assault.
Brady again urged the Bucs to sign Brown despite the fact that Arians at one point publicly said he wasn’t interested in having the team sign the problematic star. Brown gave credit to Brady when he was signed with the Bucs back in 2020. He even donned one of Brady’s “TB12” baseball hats during the presser.
Still, Brown had these comments about Brady a little over a year later.
“Because when I say to you I’m your friend, that means I got your back,” Brown said. “That’s what a friend mean, but a friend is not like that in you know in this world, and how we living, you know we play professional sports. Not everybody in sports is gonna be your friend. Tom Brady is my friend why? Because I’m a good football player. He need me to play football, right? These guys called me to win the Super Bowl, not for the Toilet Bowl. They didn’t say, hey AB, we having problems with the toilet over here in Tampa, you think you can flush the $%@ down and help us out? No, they called me and said hey AB, we need you to win the Super Bowl because Tom Brady saw me come to the Pats and run through those guys.”
Antonio Brown Still Seems to Respect the Patriots
Brown seems to have great respect for the Patriot Way. He made some references to it during his rant. It was one of the rare moments when he didn’t ensure the conversation stayed on him.
“The Patriots run a good system with practice and details and he [Brady] learned that AB is a professional,” Brown said. “No matter what you say about AB, AB put his heart on the line. AB know the play when it’s fourth-down money because he was studying up all night. He know the two-huddle. I can count on him, but that’s on the football field.”
Brown Takes One More Swipe at Brady
Brown became what appeared to be defensive when one of the hosts asked Brown what he believes makes Brady so good.
“You talking about what makes Tom so good? Yeah Tom can’t do nothing by himself. He got to play on a team. This is a football game, but this is what the world is becoming. I just watch TV and they say the coach [Arians] just lied and said AB never told me about an injury. Then I put up the text. It’s still negativity on my name.
Brown took his final swipe at Brady saying he is the real general manager of the Buccaneers, and then compared his salary to Rob Gronkowski’s, and wondered why he had to be signed on a “earn-it deal.”
“If Tom Brady’s my boy, why am I playing for a earn-it salary? Right, you my boy though, right? Gronkowski is his boy, right? How much he get paid? Who’s better than me over there? Let’s be real, right? Who is the guy that get it popping?”
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Antonio Brown Breaks Silence, Slams Tom Brady