Bruce Arians ready to welcome Antonio Brown back to Bucs

The Buccaneers -- like many other teams across the NFL -- have a depleted roster thanks to the usual late-season injuries and not-so-usual COVID outbreaks.

So when it comes to suspended wide receiver Antonio Brown, Bucs head coach Bruce Arians is ready to look past the missteps and in order to fill out his roster.

"It's in the best interest of our football team," Arians said on Sunday, via CBS Sports. "Both of those guys (Brown and safety Mike Edwards) have served their time and we'll welcome them back."

Brown and Edwards were each suspended three games without pay for producing fake COVID-19 vaccine cards. Both players are now fully vaccinated and have admitted to wrongdoing without appealing their suspensions, ESPN reported in early December.

This is certainly a change of heart for Arians, who made it clear he wouldn't tolerate bad behavior from Brown when the embattled wideout signed with the team in 2020.

Then again, Tampa Bay is pretty thin at wide receiver at the moment with Mike Evans and Chris Gowin sustaining injuries in Sunday's 9-0 shutout at the hands of the New Orleans Saints. Long story short, they need Brown's help. 

"A lot of the guys got banged up tonight, but that's part of football," said quarterback Tom Brady, who was shut out for the first time in 15 seasons on Sunday. "So we have to try to figure out who can go in and fill in some roles and play great football, and we're going to have to put together a great week this week."

Brown would instantly be elevated to WR1 upon return, having caught 29 passes for 418 yards and four touchdowns in five games played this season.