Antonio Brown says Buccaneers wanted to pay him $200K 'to go to the crazy house'

Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Antonio Brown said during an interview set to air this week that the NFL team offered to give him $200,000 "to go to the crazy house."

Brown sat down for an interview with Bryant Gumbel on HBO's "Real Sports" and shed light on his final days with the team, explaining that he was asked to seek mental health treatment, according to MassLive.

"These guys at Tampa Bay Bucs tried to make an agreement with me to give me $200,000 to go to the crazy house so these guys could look like they know what they're talking about," Brown said in the interview, according to the news outlet.

His lawyer, Sean Burstyn, who was also present during the interview, then added clarification about the proposal, MassLive noted.

"The offer was Antonio would basically sit on the sidelines, go on some list and commit himself to some form of intensive mental health treatment," Burstyn said. "And we were specifically told, in writing, by the general manager, twice, 'Don't spin this any other way.'"

Later in the interview, Gumbel reportedly asked Brown if he believes that he needs any form of help concerning his mental health.

"I have mental wealth, man," Brown replied, according to MassLive. "I know a lot of people may not understand me or know how I look at things or don't know how I react emotionally to things. But that's not for them to understand me. I've got a beautiful family, kids, and people all across the world that look up to me. There's no reason I'm in this position at this point."

Brown and his lawyer also reportedly said during the interview that they are considering filing a lawsuit against the Buccaneers for defamation.

"A whole lotta money. A whole lot," Brown said. "It's totally disrespect, man. Mental health is an important key in the world, so to drag people along and play on people's mental health, it's unfair and unfortunate."

Brown left the Buccaneers in the middle of a game earlier this month, removing his jersey and throwing it into the crowd before exiting the field shirtless.

"He is no longer a Buc. That's the end of the story. Let's talk about the guys who went out there and won the game," Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians said at the time.

Brown has since accused the team of covering up practices of medical mismanagement.

"I didn't quit. I was cut," Brown wrote in a statement released earlier this month through his attorney, saying he could no longer play following an ankle injury, to the dissatisfaction of the coaches. "I didn't walk away from my brothers. I was thrown out."