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Antonio Brown is vaccinated and willing to get booster on live TV, his attorney says

Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Antonio Brown lifts his arms and smiles during a game against the Eagles.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Antonio Brown is vaccinated against COVID-19 and willing to get his booster shot on TV, his attorney said.
(Matt Rourke / Associated Press)
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Antonio Brown‘s former personal chef claims that the vaccination card the Tampa Buccaneers receiver submitted to the NFL is a fake.

Antonio Brown’s attorney, Sean Burstyn, said the seven-time Pro Bowlers is, in fact, vaccinated and would be willing to get his booster shot on live TV.

This is fun, isn’t it?

Ever since Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was exposed for misleading others about his vaccination status earlier this month, everyone in the NFL is under even greater scrutiny than before regarding the NFL’s COVID protocols.

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Which made it the perfect time for a disgruntled former employee to go public with his claims that Brown tried to skirt those rules.

Steven Ruiz, an L.A. chef who temporarily relocated to Florida to work for Brown, told the Tampa Bay Times that Brown’s girlfriend, Cydney Moreau, asked him to obtain fake vaccination cards. The newspaper published a screenshot that showed an alleged discussion about the matter via text message.

Not very effectively, though. Cherry-picking quotes didn’t help him defend his COVID deception.

Nov. 6, 2021

The Tampa Bay Times confirmed the number in the text belonged to Moreau. But she told the newspaper that she does not know Ruiz and said of the text exchange, “That’s not true.”

Ruiz, who said he was speaking out after being unable to collect $10,000 that he says Brown owes him, said he was unable to obtain the fake vaccination cards. Yet days before the start of training camp, Ruiz said, Brown showed him a pair of fake vaccination cards he had been able to purchase for himself and Moreau. Ruiz also said he saw personal trainer Alex Guerrero snap photos of the cards, presumably to send to the Buccaneers as proof of Brown’s vaccination status, but added that he didn’t think Guerrero knew they were fake.

The Buccaneers did not allow Brown to speak with the newspaper and Guerrero declined comment.

Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians has said his team is 100% vaccinated. After the report came out Thursday, the team released a statement. “All vaccination cards were reviewed by Buccaneers personnel and no irregularities were observed,” the team stated.

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The Times’ Sam Farmer analyzes each matchup and predicts the winners of Week 11 of the 2021 NFL season.

Nov. 18, 2021

Brown’s attorney told ESPN on Thursday that Brown is vaccinated.

“If Antonio’s doctors and the guidelines require a booster shot, then at that time, he’ll be happy to do it live on TV and everyone can come watch,” Burstyn said.

Of course, it’s possible both sides are telling the truth — that Brown did want and possibly obtained fake cards but then eventually was vaccinated.

Brown missed the Buccaneers’ game against the Rams in September after testing positive for COVID earlier that week.

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