Antonio Brown claimed his decision to purchase and run the Albany Empire in the National Arena League wasn’t “to make money.”
Apparently, it wasn’t to pay money, either.
The NAL announced on Thursday that it booted the Empire from the league over Brown’s “failure to pay their league mandated and overdue assessments.”
It came just one day after the former star NFL receiver went on a bizarre rant while speaking with reporters about the Empire and his role with the team.
“I want to share the people in the media who write negative about Antonio Brown and who lose sight of what the truth is here in Albany,” he said. “I didn’t come here to make money.
“I came up here to represent something that I grew up in as a little kid, and give back to the community that helped shape me to be who I am today.”
Brown’s tenure in charge of the Empire had been clouded by controversy before the termination, as his representatives previously denied that he owned the team despite him claiming that he did and the league announcing it.
There had also been allegations about players and coaches not getting paid properly, similar to the offshoot football organization’s claims that the Empire did not fulfill its financial obligations to the rest of the league.
In a statement announcing the decision, the NAL claimed Brown paid the team’s initial April assessment, but failed to make its May 15 assessment and subsequently had its April assessment challenged.
Brown also refused to pay a $1,000 fine for recent comments he made.
“Don’t let the people or the minutiae distract us,” Brown said in his rant. “This is the last year in the NAL. Next year we’re going to the AFL. Not a lot of owners around here have this type of money to even be in this league, so let’s get that clear. A lot of naysayers around here. I’ve been seeing a lot of players chit-chat about me. You think I care about what a NAL player say about me? I’m giving these guys jobs. I’m giving people careers. I’m giving people the opportunity to live out their dreams.
“I’m not gonna go back and forth for a NAL player who’s trying to be who I used to be. I want to be a leader. I want to be detailed about my action, what I stand for. What I represent here. I want to be clear about the minutiae of what we’re doing, and how we’re doing things.
“Let’s not lose sight of why I am here. I came back here in a community I grew up in to give the people here, who grew up like me, and the players here who grew up like my dad, a better opportunity to live out their dreams.”
Brown’s father, Eddie Brown, was an Arena Football League star.
Brown hasn’t played in the NFL since he quit while a member of the Buccaneers by running off the field shirtless in the middle of a game against the Jets in 2022.
He started his career with the Steelers, where he emerged as one of the best receivers in the league, before brief stints with the Patriots and Buccaneers.
“I am a lobbyist,” Brown concluded his rant. “I’m the guy who takes the mission and make the dreams fulfilled, come true. I don’t want people to lose sight about who I am, what I’m doing and what’s my purpose.
“As an owner, what’s important? Winning, sponsorships and tickets. Not regular players that are 30-years-old, just trying to be regular in their life, play spring ball. No, I’m looking for the players that really go to the next level in their lives. That’s what I’m trying, to help players fulfill their dreams,
“So when people talk about me, let’s be clear here. What’s my purpose, what I am and what I stand for.”
