Antonio Brown Rips Media After Return from Suspension: 'People Try to Bring Me Down'

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown deflected blame away from himself and toward the media for its coverage of his three-game suspension for misrepresenting his vaccination status.

When asked about his time away from the team and head coach Bruce Arians giving him a second chance, Brown dismissed it as media-created "drama":

"It's a lot of drama. It's a lot of drama you guys create, a lot of drama that people create that want stuff from me. But that's just a part of life, a part of being in the position. I can't control what people want from me, I can't control what people write about me, I can't control what people say about me. All I could do is get up every day and be the best person I can be, and when I get a chance to do my job, do my job the best way I could do it, and that's what we had today."

Brown, safety Mike Edwards and wide receiver John Franklin III were each suspended three games for providing the NFL with fake vaccination cards. Despite Arians previously implementing a zero-tolerance policy for Brown, the veteran returned to the lineup for Sunday's 32-6 road win over the Carolina Panthers. 

The seven-time Pro Bowler reeled in 10 receptions for 101 yards and said the controversy surrounding his suspension was overblown:

"I'm just here to do my job. I can't control what people write, how people try to frame me, people try to bring me down. And life is about obstacles and persevering and doing what's right, so you get the right outcomes. I'm standing before you guys grateful, humble, thankful and excited to be a part of a big win with my teammates. Its not about what I did. It's about what all the guys in there did, collectively, together. And that's it."

It's hard to see how Brown can find fault in the situation other than looking in the mirror. He, not members of the media, was the one who misrepresented his vaccine status during a pandemic.

It was also Brown who placed his career in jeopardy in the first place. In September 2019, Brown's former personal trainer, Britney Taylor, filed a lawsuit saying he sexually assaulted and raped her; they later settled a civil suit out of court. Another woman accused him of sexual misconduct shortly after Taylor filed her lawsuit. In January 2020, police were called to Brown's Florida home for allegations of domestic violence. That same month, Brown allegedly assaulted and burglarized a moving truck driver (he pleaded no contest to a felony and two misdemeanor charges in June 2020).

That's all without mentioning multiple incidents during his brief time with the Las Vegas Raiders, as well as the other behind-the-scenes issues during his time in Pittsburgh.

It was arguably only Brown's relationship with Tom Brady that saved his NFL career. The Bucs signed Brown in October 2020 despite Arians initially saying he didn't want to bring him in. Arians took a hard-line stance with Brown throughout last season, but he wiped his hands of his past comments amid injuries to Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. 

“The history has changed since that statement,” Arians told reporters last week. “A lot of things went on last year that I was very proud of him, and I made a decision this was best for our football team.”