Antonio Brown. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Controversial wide receiver Antonio Brown, who faces sexual assault allegations, has been released by the New England Patriots.
"The New England Patriots are releasing Antonio Brown," the team wrote in a statement. "We appreciate the hard work of many people over the past 11 days, but we feel that it is best to move in a different direction at this time."
Brown's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, called the split "unfortunate" and said Brown still wants to play in the league.
Brown's brief stint with New England began when he signed with the team Saturday, September 7. Just three days later, the New York Times reported Brown was being sued by his former trainer, who claims Brown raped her.
Britney Taylor, a gymnast who met Brown while they attended Central Michigan University, alleges Brown assaulted her three separate times from 2017-2018. Taylor's allegations are being investigated by the NFL.
Brown has denied the allegations, and claims he and Taylor had a consensual relationship.
Five days after the Times story broke, Brown made his debut as a Patriot against the Miami Dolphins in what would be his only playing time with the team.
A second sexual assault allegation was reported in a Sports Illustrated story the next day, which also contained accounts of troubling behavior from several people who were employed by Brown. The accuser featured in the SI story claims that Brown sent her "intimidating" texts after her account was published.
Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick walked out of a Friday press conference amid questions about Brown.
"We take all the situations with our team very seriously, and there's some things that we're looking into. But, I'm not going to have any comment on any off the field situations, or questions on that," Belichick said before leaving the podium.
Just hours later, the team announced they had parted ways with Brown.
Brown addressed the split on his Instagram page.
"Love ya champ that was fun! #GoWinIt#DoitforMe," Brown posted, below a photo of himself with Pats quarterback Tom Brady during last weekend's game.
Brown also lost his Nike deal Thursday.
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