Antonio Brown claims Patriots stole his game ball, praises Tom Brady in tweetstorm

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Antonio Brown got to work early Friday morning -- on Twitter, anyway.

The veteran wide receiver, still unemployed after the New England Patriots released him over a month ago, took on all comers early Friday morning in a lengthy "tweetstorm" beginning at 4:44 a.m.

First, Brown addressed his release from the Patriots, denying reports that the intimidating text messages he sent to Britney Taylor, who had accused him of rape and sexual assault in a civil lawsuit, led to New England dumping him.

Brown suggested the Patriots simply didn't want to pay him, which is true in part: The Pats voided his deal following his release and didn't pay him a $9 million signing bonus.

Brown, who since has filed a grievance seeking that money, accused Patriots owner Robert Kraft of penny-pinching in his tweets Friday morning.

The 30-year-old also claimed he apologized to Kraft and that the team used "media hype" as leverage to release him.

In a more bizarre accusation, Brown said the Patriots "stole" the football he caught from Tom Brady on a touchdown pass against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2, his only game for New England.

That connection with Brady was the highlight of Brown's brief tenure with the Patriots, and despite his apparent beef with the organization, he still has love for Brady.

The NFL released a statement earlier this month that it is investigating "multiple" allegations against Brown, so the wideout likely won't be returning to an NFL field anytime soon.

In the meantime, it appears he'll try to tweet through his unemployment.

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