TAMPA, Fla. — Antonio Brown agreed to a one-year deal to remain with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last month, but the veteran wide receiver has yet to officially sign the extension because he needs to pass a physical after undergoing a knee scope, coach Bruce Arians recently told PewterReport.com.
Brown underwent the successful knee scope on Tuesday.
“It’s just a matter of a physical,” Arians said. “We wanted AB back. He was a model citizen the whole time he’s been here. We wanted him back, and he’s never had surgery in his life, so it’s just a matter of getting the physical done. So yeah, I wanted him back the whole time.”
Bucs general manager Jason Licht told JoeBucsFan.com that he believes Brown will sign his contract Monday. The deal is worth up to $6.25 million and has a guaranteed value of $3.1 million, including a $2 million signing bonus, which is all contingent upon Brown passing the physical.
Brown led the Bucs in receiving targets over the final four games of the regular season and had a 36-yard touchdown catch in the Tampa Bay’s wild-card-round victory over the Washington Football Team. He suffered a knee injury the following week against the New Orleans Saints in the NFC divisional playoffs, forcing him to miss the NFC Championship Game.
But Brown returned to play in Super Bowl LV, in which he caught five passes for 22 yards and a 1-yard touchdown.
Last week, a lawsuit was filed against Brown for his role in an altercation with a moving truck driver in January 2020. The suit says that the plaintiff, Anton Tumanov, suffered severe bodily injuries and mental anguish in the incident.
Brown pleaded no contest to one felony burglary with battery charge and two lesser misdemeanor charges related to the incident, and served an eight-game suspension in 2020 for violating the league’s personal conduct policy for that incident and a sexual misconduct allegation by an artist who worked in his home in 2017.
Last month, Brown reached a settlement on a civil suit with his former personal trainer, who accused him of sexually assaulting her in 2017 and 2018.