Antonio Brown Involved in Fight at Buccaneers, Titans Joint Practice
Update: A second outbreak of fighting at Buccaneers and Titans joint practice happened after this story was published, potentially involving Tampa Bay defenders K.J. Britt and Pat O'Connor during special teams drills according to Greg Auman of The Athletic. A third and fourth skirmish ensued minutes after the second, one of which involved linebacker Devin White per Zac Blobner of 95.3 WDAE in Tampa. The story originally acknowledged that Antonio Brown's scuffle was the first and only fight at these practices.
Antonio Brown temporarily left the practice field on Thursday after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver was involved in a scrum with Tennessee Titans cornerback Chris Jackson during joint practices, per multiple reports.
Brown accused Jackson of holding him throughout a rep, which turned intense with words exchanged, shoves pushed both ways and punches thrown. Considered the instigator in the fight, Brown was quickly removed from the practice field after the two were separated according to Greg Auman of The Athletic. He returned to the gridiron nearly 20 minutes later, Auman reported.
Bucs head coach Bruce Arians said on Sunday that he and Titans head coach Mike Vrabel had a no-fighting policy arranged for joint practices this week, which led to Brown's removal from the field to cool off. Jackson, as well as teammate Clayton Geathers who jumped in to break up the fight, remained on the field after the scrum.
This is the first report of fighting in the Buccaneers' two days of joint practices with the Titans, which could be considered a positive as scuffles often arise in these types of settings.
Tampa Bay will face Tennessee in each team's second contest of the 2021 preseason on Saturday night at 7:30 P.M., at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. Arians indicated earlier in the week that the Buccaneers starters are not likely to play in the game as the joint practices were expected to be much more intense than the typical training camp setting.
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