We’ve already heard the claims of Antonio Brown’s former chef suggesting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ star receiver purchased a fake vaccination card in order to qualify as fully vaccinated. Now, Steven Ruiz (Brown’s former live-in chef) is stating Brown received said counterfeit vaccine card from a fellow Bucs teammate.
Here’s the specific quote via Jenna Laine of ESPN.
“He got them from another player who was selling them,” said Ruiz, who declined to name the player. “That player came over to the house multiple times. He had to get another copy of Cyd’s vaccine card because they got her birthday wrong on the first one.”
Antonio Brown’s camp denies the claims of Steven Ruiz
Meanwhile, Brown’s attorney, Sean Burstyn has since denied the claims made by Ruiz and doubled down in defense of his client.
“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.
The Buccaneers have made a statement in response to the original allegations, insisting they did their due diligence regarding all player statuses before the season began.
We’ll see if this story goes away any time soon, or if it continues to grow more legs. AB, the Bucs, and the NFL likely all want to move on from this situation as soon as possible. We’ll see whether that comes to fruition or not.
Ruiz, bitter toward Brown about an alleged unpaid bill amounting to $10,000, doesn’t appear to be ready to give up in his pursuit any time soon.
For now, Brown has been ruled out for Week 11’s matchup with the New York Giants as he continues to rehab an ankle injury.