Antonio Brown has insisted he ‘loves’ Tom Brady despite taking repeated shots at his ex-teammate and seemingly mocking a recent message from the legendary quarterback.
The embattled Brown, who has previously claimed to have CTE, recently leaked a direct message conversation between him and Brady, in which the latter said he was ‘so proud’ of the former receiver and told him not to miss his psychology appointments.
Brown later re-posted the private conversation to his X page and seemingly criticized Brady’s tone, writing: ‘Please don’t miss Psychologist appointments…. WTF.’
Brady, speaking on Impaulsive, replied by saying he ‘wanted the best’ for Brown.
‘I think I saw a spark in him, that if put in the right place, how incredible it could be for not just the team he was on, but for his life and what he could accomplish,’ he said.
Presented with those remarks on Saturday night, Brown initially joked that ‘traditional marijuana’ helped his life rather than Brady, before getting serious.
Ex-NFL star Antonio Brown has said he loves former teammate Tom Brady in a new interview
Brown recently shared private messages between he and Brady, and appeared to be upset with Brady telling him to attend his psychologist appointments
‘I love Tom Brady, man. Tom Brady gave me a good opportunity to play football,’ he told TMZ, before adding: ‘I don’t know about the life thing, I think he’s going too far.’
Brown was a teammate of Brady’s on two occasions, in New England and later in Tampa Bay.
With the Patriots, Brown lasted less than two weeks, with the team cutting him in 2019 amid allegations from his former trainer, Brittney Taylor, that he sexually assaulted her. The case was settled in 2021.
Brown was ultimately suspended for eight games during the 2020 NFL season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy (his suspension also followed a no contest plea to burglary and battery charges stemming from an incident that year).
Nonetheless, he earned another chance with the Buccaneers and Brady, who even allowed him to briefly live with his then-wife, Gisele Bundchen and their children as he looked for a new home.
The pair went on to win a Super Bowl together, though Brown and Brady’s relationship soured after the receiver stormed off the field shirtless in the middle of a January 2022 game.
Later that year, Brown posted another private message from Brady to his followers on Snapchat.
Brown stayed with Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen in Tampa Bay in the fall of 2020
The pair played together on two teams and won a Super Bowl while on the Buccaneers
Brown ripped off his jersey and left the field mid-game vs. the Jets in 2022 in what turned out to be his very last game
‘You are demonstrating very poor decisions and poor communication to so many people who have gone above and beyond to help you,’ Brady wrote in the purported message, which was dated May 10, 2021.
‘You are acting selfish and unfortunately many of those people are exhausted by the erratic and unpredictable emotional behavior. When I met you, you were humble, willing to learn and anxious to improve things in your life.
‘In a short period of time, you have done those things and accomplished some great things. And very much on the path to success long term. Unfortunately you have reverted very much back to a young immature man that is selfish, self serving, irrational and irresponsible.’
Since then, Brown has launched a number of shots at Brady – including accusations of him being a bad father and invoking the quarterback’s ex-wife, Bundchen.
At one point, he curiously posted an old photo of him and Bundchen hugging during his days on the Bucs.
However, Brown did offer a heartfelt apology to Brady last year on social media.
‘You helped me succeed,’ he wrote. You came and got me in the dirt, champ. Helped me be a champion. Helped me be a part of greatness, witness you be so great as a leader and as a person. I never took those things for granted, man,’ said the former WR.
He added, ‘I couldn’t live on without letting you know that as a man. I got nothing but the utmost respect for you, and I’m asking for your forgiveness.’