Antonio Brown declares role at ESPN hours after broadcaster axes 20 staff

03 July 2023 , 14:18

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Antonio Brown has claimed that he's partnered with ESPN (Image: Elsa/Getty Images)

Antonio Brown has claimed that he has a new role with ESPN, just hours after the sports media company axed 20 well known reporters this past weekend.

The former NFL star and now controversial figure has had a rough few months after walking away from the sport in January 2022, including becoming an owner of an Arena League before being kicked out of it just three months later.

Brown has also had a number of legal issues which have hugely hampered his legacy, after being one of the more likeable figures in the NFL for several years.

And while attempting to become a rapper, Brown has now suggested that he'll be working with ESPN, without being specific in what sort of role.

In a tweet which Brown made private so that only people he follows can reply to, he wrote: "Excited to announce my new partnership @espn".

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It's unlikely Brown has actually signed a deal with ESPN, and it seems more plausible he's instead making a joke, which he did recently online when he claimed he'd signed with the Baltimore Ravens this off-season.

Brown's tweet about ESPN comes at a peculiar time, after the company let go of 20 big-name reporters over the weekend. Max Kellerman, Todd McShay, Jaff Van Gundy and Jalen Rose were just four of the names to be announced to be leaving, with the company aiming to save 'tens of millions of dollars'.

The steps to axe some of its big names have reportedly been done to help save those who work behind the scenes.

Antonio Brown has been found to have making up news in the past, after claiming he'd joined the Ravens

The sackings have been heavily criticised by fellow media members and sports fans alike, especially with the likes of certain ESPN staffers such as Stephen A. Smith and Pat McAfee said to be on huge contracts - as two of the most highly-paid media members in the US.

Brown's NFL retirement has been filled with controversies, including his Snapchat account being suspended in January after he posted explicit images with a woman. The latest concerns were of his ownership of arena football team Albany Empire, which Brown acquired in March.

The team was expelled from the National Arenal League on June 15 due to Brown's failure to pay the league fees and fines that he owed - after Brown had also let go of two coaches in 12 weeks.

Charlie Wilson