Latest Regarding Steelers WR Antonio Brown

A former Steelers’ player who played three seasons with Antonio Brown tells Jeremy Fowler of ESPN that HC Mike Tomlin told them he would put up with Brown’s antics as long as keeps producing at a high level.

“[Tomlin] essentially told the group, we’ll tolerate it now because of what he brings on the field, but the minute production stops, you don’t overlook it,” the unnamed former Steeler said.

Steelers owner Art Rooney II has said publicly that the situation is bad enough that they may have to move on from Brown this offseason. However, he has since expressed some optimism the relationship could be repaired. 

While that may be the case, a former teammate believes “it’s probably over.”

“This has been brewing for years,” one ex-teammate said of Brown’s issues. “It’s just now coming to the surface.

“And it’s probably over.”

Sources tell Fowler that Brown routinely showed up late to team meetings that set up the upcoming game week.

“Tomlin basically could have fined A.B. every day if he wanted to,” one ex-teammate said.

Brown wound up being held out of the team’s Week 17 game after an incident that occurred during practice. A team source believes Brown declined to show up the Saturday before the game to prove a point to the Steelers.

“As the leash gets longer, [Brown] gets the feeling that he can do whatever he wants,” said the ex-Steeler who played with Brown for multiple seasons. “That’s where Tomlin might have wished he would have squashed this earlier.”

An NFL executive tells Fowler that Brown’s trade market is “small but strong.” Although, an NFL GM added said he thinks both sides will reconcile in the end.

A report surfaced late Thursday night that Brown and the Steelers want to work things out. However, Brown’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, tells Fowler: “(Reporter) has no idea what our position is. We have not shared it with anyone outside of the Steelers. We have shared our thoughts with the Steelers but will keep those discussions internal.”

The Steelers would incur a $21 million cap hit by trading Brown, which is typically too prohibitive for a team to take on. However, reports have said Pittsburgh believes they can easily offset the cap hit.

Brown is owed a $2.5 million roster bonus on the third day of the league year, which could work as a deadline of sorts for the Steelers to trade him.

Brown, 30, is a former sixth-round pick of the Steelers back in 2010. He’s currently in the third year of his five-year, $72.71 million contract that included a $19 million signing bonus and stands to make base salaries of $12.625 million and $11.3 million over the next two years of the agreement.

Trading Brown would be really tough for the Steelers, considering that they would take a $21.12 million cap hit by moving him before June 1. After that, the dead money hit drops to $7.04 million with the remainder being carried on their 2020 salary cap.

In 2018, Brown appeared in 15 games for the Steelers and caught 104 passes for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns.