Getty Tom Brady encouraged people to show compassion towards Antonio Brown.
Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers star receiver Antonio Brown may be close to calling it a career. During a May 28, 2022 interview with Fan Controlled Football, Brown sounded like a player contemplating retirement admitting “you can’t play forever,” while adding that he has already “done everything” during his football career.
“Obviously, we love the game but you can’t play forever,” Brown remarked. “I think I’m a great player that’s done everything in the game.”
When asked specifically about his status for the 2022 season, Brown indicated that he does not plan to suit up for an NFL team. After being released by the Bucs on January 6, Brown technically became a free agent who can sign with another team if there is a mutual interest. So far there has been little buzz about another team pushing to sign Brown.
“Nah, don’t play yourself looking at me to play,” Brown said of his status heading into next season.
Here’s a look at Brown’s full interview with FCF as the receiver talks about life after his breakup with the Bucs.
.@AB84 interview with @CharlyOnTV
Discusses his music career, playing football next season, and all things FCF
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A.B. Could Sign With a Contender After the Trade Deadline, Says Insider
“We gonna see you playing next season?” “Nah.”
AB says he’s not suiting up next season 😳 @brgridiron
(via @fcflio)
Not everyone believes the NFL has seen the last of Brown. The star wideout was still productive with the Buccaneers in 2021, despite battling multiple injuries. Brown was on pace to have more than 1,000 yards before being sidelined, notching 42 receptions for 545 receiving yards and four touchdowns during his seven appearances. CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson noted that Brown could be an appealing option for a contender after the trade deadline passes next season.
“If the trade deadline passes & a postseason contender has a starting WR out due to injury, that team would be remiss not to check on @AB84 situation, at said time,” Anderson tweeted on May 28. “Outside of the NFL interfering, seems like a challenge that’d also be hard for AB not to relish down the road too 🤷♀️.”
Brown on a Return to the Bucs: ‘I Don’t Think That’s a Possibility’
Regardless of whether Brown makes a comeback, it appears his time with the Buccaneers has permanently come to a close. Brown admitted that a return to the Bucs was an unlikely possibility, a feeling that is assuredly mutual given the way things ended in Tampa with the receiver quitting during the team’s January 2 matchup against the Jets.
“I don’t think that’s a possibility,” Brown said of a possible Tampa return during a March 31 interview with TMZ Sports. “How things were handled. How I was handled in regards to the injury. [They] just weren’t able to use me for my value. My true value. But I was grateful for the opportunity and the position that I was in and I made the most out of it.”
It is not just the way things ended, but Brown also managed to trash the Buccaneers, Tom Brady along with Bruce Arians in the weeks following his release. Brown also revealed to TMZ that his ankle needed surgery but only plans to get the procedure done if he signed with a new team.