Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe is known to be a staunch critic of the New England Patriots and veteran quarterback Tom Brady. As a co-host of Fox Sports 1’s “Undisputed”, Sharpe spews fiery commentary against almost every move the Patriots and Brady make. That’s why it was a surprise when he defended Brady against one of former Patriots wide receiver Antonio Brown’s tweet. Earlier, Brown created a firestorm when he declared himself as the best sixth-rounder in the NFL, overlooking that Brady was also a sixth-round pick back in 2000. Sharpe, on his Twitter account, responded to Brown’s tweet, saying “Gr8est 6th rounder ever: Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr.”, referring to the Patriots veteran quarterback.
Brown also drew flak from Patriots fans, saying Brady has six Super Bowl rings while the wide receiver has none. The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Brown as a 195th overall pick out of Central Michigan in the 2010 NFL Draft while Brady was a 199th overall pick out of Michigan in 2000.
Patriots firm on not bringing back Brown
The Patriots signed Brown to a one-year contract worth $15 million after he was cut by the Oakland Raiders. Brown’s partnership with Brady lasted just one game and 11 days after he was cut due to rape and sexual assault allegations. In that one game, Brady and Brown showed great chemistry. The veteran wideout caught four passes for 54 yards and a touchdown in the Patriots’ 43-0 win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 2.
Recently, reports swirled that the Patriots might bring back Brown after the latter apologized to team owner Robert Kraft and the organization for the bad media that he brought. However, the Patriots remained firm and did not sign Brown amid their offensive struggles this season. Many teams are also interested in signing Brown, but they all want to wait for the NFL’s decision on the issues against the wide receiver.
Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report said that Brown could face a lengthy suspension, spanning from six games to an entire season, according to his sources.
Antonio Brown’s looking at a multi-game suspension, per @MikeFreemanNFL.
Several sources around the league believe the NFL will suspend AB “for at least six games.” Others believe the punishment could span an entire season. pic.twitter.com/cExkuOQz4S
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) December 17, 2019
Edelman prefers winning
Julian Edelman is playing one of the best seasons of his career, catching 92 passes for 1,019 yards and six touchdowns, so many were considering him as a shoo-in for the Pro Bowl.
However, Edelman’s name was not among the three AFC wideouts named to the Pro Bowl despite ranking second in the conference in catches and tied for third among wideouts in receiving yards. In an interview on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show”, Edelman said he doesn’t play for individual awards, but he plays to win games. The veteran wide receiver said he’s focused on their important match with the Buffalo Bills on Saturday at Gillette Stadium. When asked about the taping incident of the Cincinnati Bengals involving a member of the Patriots’ production team, Edelman called it “that’s pretty much a joke.” Edelman said the team hasn’t thought about it because they are focused on more important matters.