Antonio Brown just posted pieces of an intense conversation with Jon Gruden ... where the coach tells him point-blank to "stop this sh*t and just play football" ... and it seems AB has a problem with the message.

Here's parts of the convo ...

Gruden: "What the hell is going on, man?"

AB: "Just a villain all over the news, man."

Gruden: "You're not a villain. You're the most misunderstood f**king human being in my entire life that I've ever met. I mean, I brought you here because you're my favorite guy. I've never seen a guy work harder."

Gruden: "Please stop this sh*t and just play football. How hard is that? You're a great football player. Just play football."

AB: "I'm more than just a football player, man."

AB posted the vid with apparent intentions of pointing out he's been treated like a piece of meat and not a person. In other words, he's trying to convey that he's more than just a football player.

The problem ... did Gruden know he was being recorded?? And, if not, how is he going to feel about AB posting their convo on the Internet?

There are possible legal ramifications too, if both Gruden and Brown were in CA at the time of the call.

Cali is a 2-party consent state ... which means both sides have to be aware if the convo is being recorded ... or else it can be considered an illegal recording.

Brown and the Raiders have been butting heads for the past month ... with things really coming to a head in the past 48 hours. You have to wonder whether this is the last straw.

Of course, AB publicly apologized at practice earlier on Friday after an incident with Raiders GM Mike Mayock ... so was the apology sincere??