A little over a month ago, Steelers chairman Art Rooney II was asked about Antonio Brown. By that point, the collective understanding was that the relationship between Brown—who had been at the center of some sort of dust-up in the week preceding the Steelers’ must-win regular season finale against the Bengals, which ultimately led to Brown missing that game—and the Steelers had grown too contentious, too discordant to reasonably attempt to salvage. The Rooneys are royalty ‘round these here parts, so some gentle assurance from Art II, one of the NFL’s most forward-facing executives, regarding Brown’s future would’ve done wonders to placate the increasingly-hostile fanbase—even if said assurance wasn’t entirely truthful.
Steelers Stock Report: The Antonio Brown post-mortem and trade prospects
