The New England Patriots’ decision to cut Antonio Brown on the surface seemed like a no-brainer.

It reportedly was not behind closed doors.

Head coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft, according to NBC, didn’t reach a “unanimous” vote over axing Brown, who at the time of his release last week had reportedly just sent threatening text messages to a woman who accused him of making unwanted sexual advances — the second woman to accuse him in September of sexual misconduct.

Brown is the subject of a civil lawsuit filed by his former trainer — the first woman to come forward — who alleged Brown sexually assaulted and raped her three times between 2017 and 2018.

The retaliatory text messages sent to the second accuser — who does not have a lawsuit pending — appeared to be the final straw in Brown’s 11-day, one-game stay with the Patriots.

The NBC report said that had Kraft not insisted on Brown’s release, Belichick likely would have allowed him to remain a member of the Super Bowl-favorite Patriots.

This could explain why the 31-year-old Brown was so appreciative of Belichick — and quarterback Tom Brady — in social media posts following his release but attacked Kraft in a since-deleted tweet referencing the owner being charged in February for allegedly soliciting a prostitute at a Florida massage parlor. On Monday, the Patriots opted not to pay Brown $5 million of his $9 million signing bonus (the remaining money is due in January).

Neither Belichick nor Kraft has publicly commented on the matter. On Sunday, Belichick gave a death stare when CBS reporter Dana Jacobson asked what went into the decision to cut Brown, who had signed a one-year contract worth up to $15 million.

The report also indicates that Brady was confident he could help save Brown’s career and get him on the right track.

Brady told Kraft he was “a million percent in” with the Patriots signing the seven-time Pro Bowler, but that was in the days before the allegations became public.

On Monday, Brady said that conversation with Kraft was in private and that he had no involvement in the team’s decision to cut Brown.

Brown tweeted after his release that he was quitting the NFL but on Thursday indicated he wanted back in: “I’m still the best why stop now,” Brown tweeted.

That came after his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said a few teams were still “very interested in [Brown]” and that the receiver could resume his career once his legal matters are resolved.

The NFL is also investigating both incidents, and it’s likely Brown would be placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt list, which would prevent him from getting on the field, even if he were to sign before each matter is resolved.

It’s unclear which teams would be interested in Brown, who forced his way out of Pittsburgh in March before being released by the Raiders — amid multiple off-the-field transgressions — and then the Patriots.