The Tragic Life Of Antonio Brown

This article contains references to mental health issues and allegations of sexual assault.

Antonio Brown is easily one of the most controversial athletes to ever play in the NFL — and he was one of the best wide receivers, too. Since he was young, Brown seemed to struggle with finding solid ground, from being estranged from his parents to running with the wrong crowd. When Brown started playing football, it was a positive experience for him — something that gave him focus. An escape. And while Brown's career could be called a success by some standards, it hasn't been an easy ride for him.

Brown's been faced with difficult circumstances at nearly every turn. When he finally seems to settle in, something always seems to go wrong. Brown has played for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the New England Patriots, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and has one Super Bowl under his belt (alongside Tom Brady in Tampa). But his career in the NFL came to a close, at least temporarily, when in 2021, he removed his uniform, walked off the field during a game, and didn't return. Brown has talked about a return to football, but he seems to be focused on other things, like a rap career. However, Brown admitted to blowing through some $100 million and has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. 

And so, the tragic life of Antonio Brown continues.

Antonio Brown didn't have the easiest upbringing. He grew up in a low-income neighborhood in Miami, where he was often on his own. "Everyone wants the sob story. I'm from the hood, I came from nothing, so I got a nothing mentality," he told ESPN's Jeff Darlington in 2019. Football was part of Brown's life from a young age. After his parents split, his dad moved to New York to play for the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League. Brown and his younger brother, Desmond, would spend weeks with their dad, learning the sport. When he was back in Liberty City, however, things weren't as positive. "Every party I went to ended in a shootout," he told ESPN in 2015.

When Brown was 16, he had a falling out with his mom's new husband and left home. At the time, Brown was still in high school. "He was living a grown man's life," Brown's high school coach at Miami Norland Nigel Dunn told ESPN. With both of his parents sort of doing their own thing, Brown depended on the other people in his life to help him get by, especially his grandmother, whom he speaks highly of. Brown knew that he wanted to play football and says that his whole family knew — but it was up to him to make it happen.

When it came time for Antonio Brown to apply for college, he had one thing on his mind: football. He applied to Florida State University, hoping to play on the school's football team. However, his application was denied because of his grades. He enrolled at North Carolina Tech Prep, where he played ball for one season before getting a scholarship to Florida International University. Unfortunately, that didn't last long. After a fight between Brown and a security guard at the school, he lost his scholarship. In 2007, he enrolled at Central Michigan University and played wide receiver for the school's football team. Things finally seemed to be turning around for AB. 

Although he was good — great even — Brown often felt like he was the last guy picked for the team. "I'm not six foot five. I'm not 250 pounds. I've been overlooked. Doubted," he wrote in an Op-Ed for The Player's Tribune. Brown said that he leaned on his faith to get him through. "The only way to destroy doubt is with belief," he wrote for the outlet. When he was trying to get drafted, Brown did everything he could to try to improve his stats. In the 2010 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected him in the sixth round with the 195th overall pick. 

Antonio Brown has been in trouble with the law quite a few times throughout the course of his life. In 2018, for example, Brown was being sued for damages caused after he allegedly threw furniture off a balcony at an apartment complex in South Florida. In January 2020, a warrant for his arrest was issued after an alleged altercation with a moving company. Brown reportedly pleaded no contest in the case and was put on probation for two years. He was also ordered to complete 100 hours of community service in addition to attending an anger management program. 

Brown's legal issues didn't stop there. In 2019, he was accused of sexual assault, which he settled in 2021. In October 2022, he was accused of selling a counterfeit watch and had to pay up after a judge ruled in favor of the plaintiff in the case.

Also in 2022, Brown faced charges of domestic battery after an alleged fight with his ex-fiancée, Chelsie Kyriss, with whom he shares four children. In December of that year, the charges had been dropped. Less than one year later though, in October 2023, Brown was taken into custody over unpaid child support claims. Months prior, a judge overseeing the case ruled that Brown was indeed delinquent on his payments. In August 2023, Brown missed a $15,000 payment to Wiltrice Jackson, and a few months later, Jackson told TMZ, "I do want him arrested," as her ex still hadn't made a payment, owing her some $31,000. He was released from jail on $15,000 bond.

Antonio Brown joined the New England Patriots in September 2019 — the very same day that he parted ways with the Oakland Raiders. His one-year, $15 million deal with a sweet $9 million sign-on bonus had him riding high in Foxborough, Mass., with Tom Brady as his quarterback. But while Brown may have been seeking a trip to the Super Bowl, his hopes were dashed after just one game with his new team. "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," the team said in a statement, according to NFL.com. Although the Patriots organization didn't supply details about its decision to release Brown, allegations of sexual assault appeared to have played a part. 

At the time, one of Brown's former trainers, Britney Taylor, accused him of rape. Based on the timing of Taylor's lawsuit, it seems obvious that the Patriots organization didn't want to deal with a PR nightmare. Brown would later countersue Taylor for defamation, and in 2021, a settlement was reached. In a statement obtained by ESPN, a lawyer for Taylor said that the two had been longtime friends and despite the "aggressive litigation," they wished one another the "best." And so, Brown's 11 days with the Patriots became a blip in his career and nothing more.

Many athletes become incredibly close to their agents, and that seemed to be the case for Antonio Brown and Drew Rosenhaus. Rosenhaus kept Brown as a client for nearly a decade, hanging with him through some sticky situations, but ultimately decided to part ways with the star athlete in 2020. Getting the inside scoop, Adam Schefter from ESPN shared that Rosenhaus had written a letter to the NFL Players Association sharing his intention to drop Brown as a client. Though he made it clear that he wanted to work with Brown in the future, he wouldn't until Brown "first gets help."

Brown didn't oblige, however, and instead moved on with his life by hiring agent Ed Wasielewski of EMG Sports in April 2020. In 2021, Brown filed a lawsuit against Rosenhaus. Brown claimed that Rosenhaus got him involved with a marketing agency Rosenhaus owned without informing him. After his time in the NFL came to an unofficial close in 2021, Brown worked with agent J.R. Rickert. In 2023, Rickert told CBS Sports that his client was "exploring the right fit" and that there was "genuine" interest in Brown from various teams in the NFL. Brown is currently an unsigned free agent. 

For someone like Antonio Brown, playing football was akin to breathing. The guy was just that good. However, it's unclear if Brown will ever play in the NFL again. Despite having an impressive record, if Brown were to officially retire from the NFL today, he wouldn't exactly be going out on the best terms. In 2021, he inked a deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — once again playing with Tom Brady. This time, however, Brown would go on to win his first and only Super Bowl to date. He re-signed with the team in 2021, but what happened next was something no one saw coming.

In the third quarter of a game between the Bucs and the New York Jets that season, Brown took off his uniform and walked off the field. Speculation arose that this was just another Brown antic, but Brown later released a statement claiming that head coach Bruce Arians forced him to play despite a serious ankle injury. "Yes, I walked off the field. But there's a major difference between launching from the line and taking hits, compared to jogging off the field with a rush of emotions going through your mind. I am reflecting on my reaction, but there was a trigger. The trigger was someone telling me that I'm not allowed to feel pain," Brown said at the time, according to ESPN. Days later, the Bucs organization released a statement claiming that Brown was given an opportunity to see an orthopedic specialist, but he failed to do so. And so, he was cut. He hasn't played professional football since.

Antonio Brown has dated a few women over the course of his life, but he really hasn't found "the one." The football player has seven children with a few different women but hasn't ever been married. He welcomed his first child — a boy — in 2007 with then-girlfriend Shameika Brailsford. After the two split, a bitter custody battle broke out. Brown then dated Wiltrice Jackson, and the two welcomed a baby girl in 2008. As previously mentioned, Brown was accused of failing to pay child support to Jackson, which has strained their relationship. 

In the years that followed, Brown found love again with Chelsie Kyriss, whom he started dating in 2012. The two welcomed three boys together: Autonomy Brown in 2014, Ali Brown in 2015, and Apollo Brown two years later. However, even though they were together for years, there was a lot of trouble in their relationship. For example, in 2018, Brown went to court in an effort to get Kyriss out of his Florida home, according to USA Today. The two had split, and the case was eventually closed, but Brown was back in court a short while later with claims that Kyriss was an "unfit mother," per the outlet. After all that drama, Brown and Kyriss got back together in 2020 and welcomed a little girl they named Allure. Brown even got down on one knee, though he and Kyriss never made it down the aisle. They split for good in 2022. 

Once back on the market, Brown was linked to a few different women. In July 2024, he welcomed his seventh child, a son named Ace, with model Cydney Moreau. His current dating status is unclear.

If it seems as though Antonio Brown can't catch a break, well ... he can't. Despite making millions in the NFL, Brown has filed for bankruptcy. "I mean, I'm f***ed up, you know what I'm saying? I just can't comply with debt. You know, it's all about protecting yourself. But yeah, you know ... I'm not broke, but I'm fractured ... I'm just reallocating the debt to take care of the debtors. That's all I'm doing," he said on The Pivot podcast in 2024. "You know, anybody can sue you, take you for whatever you got ... You know, at this point, I don't work, I don't make millions of dollars where it's coming in where I could just [pay off] some of that money. So, you know, Chapter 11 is about restructuring the money you're making so you can take care of the debt," he explained.

In his court filing, Brown claimed to have $50,000 to his name, according to Celebrity Net Worth. He is said to owe some $3 million to creditors. Of course, Brown owes four women child support for his seven kids as well, which is certainly a hefty amount of money going out the door each month.

To make things even more complicated in Antonio Brown's life, many people believe that he has chronic traumatic encephalopathy, more commonly known as CTE. The disease affects the brain and often affects people who have suffered multiple head injuries. According to the Mayo Clinic, research on CTE is still limited, but there are a variety of symptoms said to be associated with the condition, including aggression, emotional instability, and depression.

Interestingly, Brown has made several references to suffering from CTE on social media; however, in August 2024, Brown seemed to deny it. He and his former Pittsburgh Steelers teammate, Le'Veon Bell, talked about the possibility of having CTE while chatting on the CTESPN podcast. "I don't want to say it's brain damage because you can't live if it's brain damage. I feel like people try to frame CTE as a concussion you may have, but yo, we had a bunch of concussions. You know what I'm saying, like, you could live after a concussion," Brown said.

Beyond concerns about CTE, many fans are worried about Antonio Brown's mental health overall. Whether he's suffering from an actual condition or not, many have often wondered if Brown needs to seek professional help. Concerns miny stem from his various outbursts and his seemingly constant issues with the law. In January 2022, Associated Press journalist Rob Maaddi wrote that Brown should take advantage of the services offered by the NFL and get a mental health evaluation. "Brown clearly needs help," he wrote. Maaddi also quoted Tom Brady's comments after Brown's dismissal from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. "Everybody should do what they can to help him in ways that he really needs it. We all love him. We care about him deeply," Brady had said at the time.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Brown would totally disagree with any and all of the mental health comments that people have said about him. In fact, in a 2022 interview with CBS News, Brown denied having any mental health issues. "I never had a mental health diagnosis," Brown told the outlet. "I never had a issue [sic] or problem. I don't take pills. I just got a high IQ," he added.

It's no secret that Antonio Brown has faced numerous challenges throughout his life. From his childhood to his challenging romantic relationships to his trouble with the law and his controversies with various football teams, there has been trouble for Brown at every turn. At least once over the past two decades, Brown has felt the need to apologize for how he's handled things. In 2019, after a flurry of social media posts, he issued a public apology to anyone that he'd hurt.

"First and foremost, I'd like to apologize to my family, friends and anyone who I offended. I never once meant to make anyone feel like I wasn't thankful and appreciative of the opportunity that I was afforded to play the game I love," Brown wrote, according to Yahoo! Sports. "Over the past few weeks I've had the opportunity to think about everything that's transpired and I am deeply sorry to all who I've offended. While my behavior was inexcusable, sometimes when people are coming at you with false information and allegations, we handle ourselves in ways that we sometimes regret," he continued. His post has since been deleted

If you or anyone you know needs help with mental health or sexual abuse, contact the relevant resources below:

• The Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

• The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).