Well, we knew it was happening, but didn’t know exactly when. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, today is the day. The Bucs will release wide receiver Antonio Brown on Thursday, following his outburst during Sunday’s win over the Jets.

After a sideline argument with Bruce Arians and the coaching staff in the third quarter, Brown tossed his shoulder pads and threw equipment into the crowd. Then he ran half-naked to the end zone, hyping up the fans and giving the “peace” sign before running into the tunnel.

While this was going on, the Bucs offense was on the field driving into Jets territory. Soon after, Tampa Bay scored on a pass from Tom Brady to Cam Brate. If that wasn’t enough, Brown left the game before it was over, getting an Uber into New York City. He was seen sitting courtside the next day at a Brooklyn Nets game.

Fallout From Brown Incident

Right after the Bucs beat the Jets, Bruce Arians stated that Brown is no longer a Buc following his actions. Despite that, he was still on Tampa Bay’s roster for the next couple of days. Arians said that the front office was working on how to best handle the situation.

There’s been a back-and-forth between Brown’s camp and the Bucs. Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reported that Brown was getting a second opinion on his ankle. The receiver claims that Arians tried to make him play despite a serious injury. But Arians said on Monday that his discussion with Brown had nothing to do with an ankle injury.

On Thursday morning, Brown released text messages between himself and Bruce Arians. Brown believed the text messages would be damaging to Arians, but they seemed like standard communication in these situations.

Bucs Issue Statement

The Bucs have issued the following statement on Brown’s release.

The Bucs brought in Brown during the middle of the season last year after an eight-game suspension. He was an important contributing player in helping the Bucs win Super Bowl LV, even scoring a touchdown in that game. Brown’s on-field production was even better this season, as Tampa Bay went undefeated in games that he played in. However, an ankle injury kept Brown out for over two months, and he was suspended three games by the NFL for faking a COVID vaccination card.

In his return from suspension, Brown made 10 catches for 101 yards in a Week 16 win over the Panthers. He had three receptions for 26 yards in Week 17 against the Jets until he bailed.

It truly was a wild ride in Brown’s tenure with the Bucs, going from triumph and success with a Super Bowl win to an outlandish, tumultuous ending. Brown finished with 87 catches, 1,028 yards and eight touchdowns in 15 regular season games. He also recorded eight receptions for 81 yards and two touchdowns in three playoff games in his Bucs career.