Former Falcons great alleges Buccaneers have bountygate scandal of their own

Naturally, the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a heated rivalry as divisional foes. But in 2012, things escalated to concerning levels between the two franchises -- or so the story goes.

On June 25, former Falcons edge rusher John Abraham appeared on The Water Boyz Show to reminisce about his remarkable 15-year NFL career from 2000-14. The retired veteran dropped a bombshell during his conversation with podcast hosts Brian "B Rich" Richardson and Trey Montgomery.

Per Abraham, Bucs tackle Donald Penn cautioned him that Tampa Bay coaches instructed their team to injure Falcons players during their regular-season finale that season.

"[Penn] was like, 'Hey man, be careful out here. The coaches told us to hurt you all,'" Abraham declared.

Former Falcons great alleges Buccaneers have bountygate scandal of their own

Despite the warning, Abraham didn't seem to believe Penn. "I was like, 'Stop playing,'" the former said. In response, the latter apparently reiterated his previous statement: "'Nah, they told us to hurt y'all. So we're going to be extra. After the whistle, we're going to be doing everything to try to mess with y'all.'"

According to JoeBucsFan.com, Penn has refuted the claim made by Abraham. Nevertheless, the longtime Falcons defensive end aired his grievances to the masses.

Whether it was intentional or not, Abraham happened to get hurt during that contest against Tampa Bay. But unless anyone else who was a part of the Bucs organization speaks up about the matter, his departure only amplifies the narrative. However, this is increasingly noteworthy given the timeline of events surrounding the situation.

The New Orleans Saints, another NFC South opponent, were accused of the infamous bountygate scandal. Led by defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, he and anywhere from 22-27 players from the team collected money to compensate others for their involvement.

While Penn and the Buccaneers deny it, Abraham shared explicit details when describing the story. Regardless, we must take it all with a grain of salt until/if we get more information.