Antonio Brown Calls out Tom Brady, Bruce Arians After Posting Alleged Text Messages

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown posted an exchange of text messages he said were between himself and Bucs head coach Bruce Arians ahead of last week's game against the New York Jets.

Brown, who stormed off the field in the third quarter of Sunday's win, included a picture of himself receiving treatment for an ankle injury:

ESPN's Kimberley A. Martin suggested Brown used the "barbarian" hashtag in reference to Arians. Arians later confirmed to reporters the authenticity of the exchange between himself and Brown.

He then posted messages between himself and Alex Guerrero, Tom Brady's personal trainer, along with a Home Alone 2 meme featuring Arians and Brady on Instagram:

He later clarified his stance in regards to the Bucs' future Hall of Fame quarterback and his other teammates:

Brown released a statement through his attorney, Sean Burstyn, on Wednesday night saying he played through "extreme" pain and was cut by Arians on the sideline when he refused to re-enter the game, which is when he decided to take off his pads and leave:

The 33-year-old seven-time Pro Bowl receiver also said in the statement the Bucs' head coach was aware of the ankle injury before the game.

Arians painted a different picture of what happened. He said Monday that Brown didn't provide a reason for his decision to leave the field and that an injury was never discussed.

"I don't know that he was [injured]," Arians told reporters, adding: "It's pretty obvious what happened. He left the field and that was it. We had a conversation, and he left the field."

The Buccaneers coach said after Sunday's game that Brown was "no longer a Buc," but the team has yet to make a formal roster move to release him as of Thursday morning.

Brown suffered an ankle injury in a Week 6 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. He remained sidelined until Week 16, an absence that included a three-game suspension from the NFL for originally misrepresenting his COVID-19 vaccination status.

The former Pittsburgh Steelers standout returned Dec. 26 to make 10 catches for 101 yards against the Carolina Panthers.

That performance moved him within striking distance of several performance-based incentives that could have earned him an additional $1 million. It was speculated the Bucs were icing him out of the offense to prevent those marks from being hit, but it sounds like that wasn't the case and Brown was the one who made the call not to play.

Yahoo Sports' Charles Robinson reported there are ongoing discussions between Tampa Bay, the NFL and the players association about how to handle the situation. It's possible the team places him on injured reserve because of the ankle injury or suspends him for conduct detrimental to the club in order to prevent him from signing with another team before the playoffs.

Meanwhile, the Bucs wrap up the regular season Sunday when they host the Panthers before attempting to defend their Super Bowl title in the postseason.