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After multiple accusers came forward and accused Antonio Brown of sexual assault, it appears the New England Patriots have decided to part ways with the wide receiver based on a tweet he sent out on Friday afternoon.
Thank you for the opportunity @Patriots #GoWinIt
— AB (@AB84) September 20, 2019
According to Adam Schefter, the Patriots released a statement in the wake of the news confirming they’d had a sudden change of heart.
Patriots’ statement: “The New England Patriots are releasing Antonio Brown. We appreciate the hard work of many people over the past 11 days, but we feel that it is best to move in a different direction at this time.”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 20, 2019
At a press conference earlier in the day, Bill Belichick declined to field multiple questions that were directed his way concerning the embattled player but it appears the team has decided to explore other options after the NFL announced it was looking into the allegations against him.
"The NFL also advised us that it contacted Mr. Brown’s representative and reiterated that Mr. Brown was to cease and desist efforts to contact or intimidate our client."
— robertklemko (@RobertKlemko) September 20, 2019
“As always, it is important that harassment and intimidation against victims is taken seriously, that victims have appropriate avenues for recourse, and that such behavior is not tolerated – either by an employer such as the NFL, or by society at large.”
— robertklemko (@RobertKlemko) September 20, 2019
Ten days ago, we learned Brown’s former trainer accused him of sexually assaulting her on multiple occasions, and earlier this week, Sports Illustrated spoke to a woman who said he made unwanted advances while she was painting a mural in his home.
After that story broke, the woman in question said she received intimidating texts from Brown that included pictures of her children.
New tonight: Antonio Brown sent our source from Monday’s story menacing group text messages, including a picture of her children with instructions for his associates to investigate her.
Her lawyer wrote the NFL calling for the intimidation to stop. https://t.co/rCTM8WSI6Z pic.twitter.com/QtONzBf7Ig
— robertklemko (@RobertKlemko) September 20, 2019
The Patriots previously said they were unaware of the initial accusations when they signed the wide receiver after he was released by the Raiders, who cut him from the roster after it became clear he wasn’t happy in Oakland.
As things currently stand, it would appear that Brown is officially done in the NFL unless there’s some team desperate enough to take him on despite the allegations against him, which seems highly unlikely given the circumstances.
With that said, this is the NFL we’re talking about, so you never really know.