A reunion between Antonio Brown and the Pittsburgh Steelers doesn't look to be in the cards. While appearing on the NFL Network from the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert shut down any possibility that the organization would get into the (not so boomin') business of Antonio Brown any time soon.
"We're always going to be concerned about Antonio Brown, the person," said Colbert. "We have moved on from Antonio Brown, and Coach Tomlin addressed that the last time he spoke with the media. We're worried about Antonio Brown, the person. He will always be a Steeler in that regard, but in that regard only."
Brown seemed to extend an olive branch toward quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and the organization over social media earlier this offseason, apologizing for forcing his way out of Pittsburgh and unceremoniously ending his tenure as a Steeler. Given his free agent status in the league after burning his bridge with the Raiders last summer and falling out of favor with the Patriots, his social media actions sparked questions of a potential reunion in the Steel City.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin did make headlines during a recent appearance on ESPN's "First Take" for his "Once a Steeler, always a Steeler" comment regarding a potential Brown return to Pittsburgh. However, that snippet is a bit misleading as he essentially said the same thing Colbert echoed on Tuesday.
"I'll say this: once a Steeler, always a Steeler," Tomlin said at the time. "We had great success over the course of nine-plus years with Antonio. We're always going to be interested in his growth and development as a man and we'll be open to assisting him in that, but we have no current business interest at this time."
The "no current business interest" is the key phrase to take away from Tomlin's answer there, which coincides with Colbert's more recent comments to the NFL Network.
Really, the Steelers are more concerned with the overall well-being of their once great receiver, who ranks No. 2 in franchise history in receptions (837), yards (11,207) and touchdowns (74).
Despite his immense talent, Brown has seen a fall from grace over the course of the past calendar year. In that time, he's battled legal issues after being accused of sexual misconduct and rape. He forced his way out of both Pittsburgh and Oakland, and caused the Patriots to release him after just one week after he sent intimidating text messages to one of his accusers. All of that resulted in Brown's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, terminating his professional relationship with the 31-year-old.
More recently, Brown turned himself into authorities after an arrest warrant was issued for a felony charge of battery and burglary. He was later granted bail, but a judge did rule that he must wear GPS monitoring, release his passport and guns, go through drug and alcohol testing and receive a mental health evaluation.
On top of all those legal troubles, the NFL is investigating Brown for the sexual assault allegations, which could lead to some sort of a suspension. Given all that, it's no wonder the Steelers aren't looking to bring Brown into the fold.
