The Tampa Bay Buccaneers already boast one of the best wide receiver duos in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, but quarterback Tom Brady will have another All-Pro talent on the field in Week 9 when Antonio Brown is expected to make his return to the NFL.
Brown, who was suspended for eight games by the NFL for violating the personal conduct policy, signed a 1-year contract with the Buccaneers and will reunite with Brady after his brief stint with the Patriots. After his dramatic exit from Oakland, Brown played just one game for New England before being released amid allegations of sexual misconduct.
Brown is a polarizing player and a risky signing for the Buccaneers from a public relations point-of-view, but Brown has repeatedly said that he wanted to play alongside Brady again whenever he returned to the NFL.
In an interview with former teammate Randy Moss, Brady said that he “certainly didn’t object” to the Brown signing, and said he’s excited to see what his loaded WR corps can do.
Randy Moss: “How much pull did you have lobbying for a guy like Antonio Brown coming and playing on this highly explosive offense?”
Tom Brady: “Well I’ve watched Antonio for a long time, and then had the opportunity to play with him last year for a short period of time, and [GM] Jason [Licht] and Bruce [Arians] felt there was a right opportunity to add him to a really talented group that we already have. I certainly didn’t object to it. I think the more good players we have on our team, the better we can become. He’s joining a very deep group of players at that position… Antonio’s going to work as hard as he always has. He’s a very hard worker, everyone knows that. We’ll see what we can do when he gets on the field.”
[vertical-gallery id=956879]