Tampa Bay Bucs wide receiver Antonio Brown has been suspended for three games by the NFL, following a scandal involving fake COVID-19 vaccine cards.
Brown, along with Bucs teammate, safety Mike Edwards were hit with suspensions.
#Bucs WR Antonio Brown and Mike Edwards have each been suspended without pay for the next three games for misrepresenting their vaccination status under the NFL-NFLPA COVID-19 Protocol. They have accepted the discipline and waived their right of appeal.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 2, 2021
The saga began in November when Steven Ruiz, Brown’s chef, accused the Buc’s WR of obtaining a fake status card so that he could avoid the NFL’s protocols regarding vaccination.
Ruiz had been asked to help but he was unable to obtain the cards himself.
Weeks later he saw a pair of cards for Brown and his girlfriend sitting on the dining room table at his house. Brown and Ruiz ended up having a falling out, so Ruiz went public with his side of the story.
Fox News reporting:
In mid-November, the Tampa Bay Times reported that Brown was accused by his former live-in chef of acquiring a fake COVID-19 vaccination card so that he could avoid NFL protocols.
Brown and Los Angeles chef Steven Ruiz had a falling out after the superstar wide receiver failed to pay a debt. Ruiz, who is the owner of “Taste ThatLA,” claimed Brown owed him $10,000.
In July, Ruiz said he wasn’t able to get a fake card for Brown. A few weeks later, Ruiz said, Brown showed up with fake vaccination cards that he bought for himself and his girlfriend, model Cydney Moreau. According to the chef, the cards were on Brown’s dining room table just days before the team’s training camp was set to begin.
That night, Alex Guerrero, a personal trainer and co-founder of the TB12 method with quarterback Tom Brady, went over to Brown’s house to help him recover from knee surgery. Ruiz said Guerrero took a picture of Brown’s vaccination card so he could help the organization document the list of vaccinated players. Ruiz, however, said that he thinks Guerrero was unaware that the card was fake.Brown suffered a foot injury during a Thursday Night Football game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 14 and hasn’t played since.
The NFL and NFLPA put out a joint statement on Thursday.
“The health and safety of players and personnel is our top priority,” the statement said. “The protocols were jointly developed working with our respective experts to ensure that we are practicing and playing football as safely as possible during the ongoing pandemic. The NFL-NFLPA jointly reinforce their commitment and further emphasize the importance of strict adherence to the protocols to protect the well-being of everyone associated with the NFL.”
Once upon a time, Antonio Brown was perhaps the most prolific playmaker in the NFL. He was virtually un-guardable and certainly did some amazing things with Big Ben and the Steelers.
But after leaving Pittsburgh, a series of strange incidents and scandals eventually diminished what greatness he had left towards the tail-end of his true prime.
Brown has still showed momentary flashes of his old self, but he is far removed from the football player he used to be.
However, he is probably still in better physical condition than 99.9999% of Americans. So I believe it’s safe to say that getting the vaccine was probably not worth the risk or inconvenience to him.
But it’s not really my place to speculate on that; it’s his personal medical decision and I’m sure he made a decision to avoid the vaccine because of reasons he deemed to be contrary to his best interest.
More power to him. Say what you will, but a man has to feed his family.
He can’t do that if he’s in the hospital with myocarditis.
Showing the profound sense of shamelessness they have, despite what everyone with a brain can see, leagues like the NFL, NBA, and others continue to force the most physically fit amongst us to inject themselves with an experimental serum in order to play the game they love and are paid millions for.
I think maybe the only professional athletes at risk of COVID are the ones who probably retired in the 1980s.
The left is already stirring up insinuations of racism after Packers QB Aaron Rodgers was caught fibbing to the media about his vaccination status a few weeks ago.
Rodgers just lied to the Fake News losers. He didn’t flash a fake ID.
Aaron Rodgers:
-lies about vaccine status; endangers people
-receives slap-on-the-wrist fineAntonio Brown:
-lies about vaccine status; endangers people
-suspended 3 gamesColin Kaepernick:
-endangers no one
-blacklisted by NFLThis league is a f*cking joke. #WhitePrivilege
— Matt (@nosoupforgeorge) December 2, 2021
If you make a fake vaccine card or buy a fake card…you’re despicable. You don’t have to be vaccinated, THERE IS NO VAX MANDATE. Make your choice and be honest. It’s wild, next level disrespectful. The people you’re around could immunocompromised or their family. You’re a coward.
— Joy Taylor (@JoyTaylorTalks) December 2, 2021
This is what I was trying to say but she said it better https://t.co/teouhGuVoj
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) December 3, 2021
As I mentioned and as pointed out here, there was a stark difference between what Rodgers did and what Brown did.
Just to be clear: There is an enormous difference between what Aaron Rodgers did and what Antonio Brown did.
Brown actually used a fake vaccine card and *everyone* thought he was vaccinated.
Rodgers misled the media, but the NFL, the Packers & his teammates all knew his status.
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) December 2, 2021
Free AB!
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