Antonio Brown Drops Controversial Theory on Why He Thinks Tom Brady Is His Friend

The quarterback played a critical role in Brown signing with the Patriots in 2019 and subsequently with Tampa Bay last season.

Antonio Brown shared on an interesting (and potentially controversial) theory on why Tom Brady is his friend during a Friday appearance on the Full Send Podcast.

“Tom Brady’s my friend. Why? Because I’m a good football player,” the wide receiver said. “He needs me to play football. People have different meanings of what friendship is.”

Brown goes on to talk about his salary in comparison to former teammate Rob Gronkowski, saying, “Why is AB on a prove-it deal?”

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The quarterback played a critical role in Brown signing with the Patriots in 2019 and subsequently with Tampa Bay last season. However, after Sunday's game against the Jets when Brown took off his pads and left his team mid-game, Brady also caught some heat as the wide receiver fired back at the franchise.

On Thursday, Brady was asked about how Brown has treated him this week.

“I think there's a lot of personal, obviously, feelings. I don't think this is really the week to discuss it though,” Brady said. “You know, I'm just going to do the best I can do quarterbacking the team, try to put together a great week, finish strong. You just always deal with different things over the course of the season. That's what we're doing this week."

Arians claimed during his Thursday press conference that Brown was upset he wasn't being targeted enough during the game. The wide receiver was close to reaching a number of contract incentives that could have paid out $1 million in total. However, Brown's camp painted a different perspective of the situation that escalated to his release from the franchise. 

On Wednesday night, Brown, via his attorney Sean Burstyn, accused the team of executing an “ongoing cover-up” of the fact that he was effectively cut during the game. Brown said that he relented when pressured by a coach to play with an ankle injury, and was injected with what he describes as a “powerful and sometimes dangerous painkiller.” When the pain became too much and limited his performance, Brown said he exited the game and sat on the sideline, where he claims he was admonished by a coach to return to the field.

”Imagine the guy who you think has your back, who you flew here with to do a mission, and they know your situation, and you get there and you're battling with them, then he tells you that because you can't go to war with him, he tells you to get the f--- out of there?” Brown said on the Full Send Podcast. “I'm an alpha male. If you discriminate on my public image and my name, at that point it's f--- you too professionally.”

After the game, Bucs coach Bruce Arians said Brown made no mention of an injury before leaving the field, a claim that Brown said Wednesday was “100% inaccurate.” He said the two of them exchanged text messages where Arians acknowledged the injury. 

"Antonio Brown never faked an injury in his life. It is incredible that people are pushing false rumors that what happened Sunday was the result of mental health issues and not a well known ankle injury," Brown's lawyer, Sean Burstyn, wrote in a Twitter thread of his own. "Mental health is important, but so is basic dignity."

• All Bucs: Bruce Arians Offers His Story on Antonio Brown Debacle

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