Antonio Brown Involved In Dispute
Steelers star Antonio Brown was allegedly involved in a domestic dispute in January, according to TMZ. However, he was not arrested in connection with the incident. 
Last month in Florida, a woman made allegations of misconduct against Brown and phoned local police. Details are murky, but a person with the Hollywood Police Dept. confirmed to TMZ that “no arrests were made.”
This isn’t the first time Brown has been accused of poor off-the-field misconduct. Last year, Brown was sued by a man claiming that the wide receiver nearly killed his child by throwing furniture off of the balcony of his Florida home. Brown, meanwhile, said the man is lying and proclaimed his innocence.
Brown has pushed for a trade in recent weeks, but this latest news may hurt his value. Over the last few days, Brown reiterated his desire for a trade and has been ignoring calls from owner Art Rooney II.
Brown had another productive year in 2018, though he was overshadowed at times by rising star JuJu Smith-Schuster. The three years and $39MM left on his current deal may be a barrier to a trade and the cap hit the Steelers would have to absorb may be an even bigger barrier. Every team in the league would love to have Brown, but any deal would require a serious forfeiture of draft picks and a pricey commitment.
Now, the latest allegations against Brown could muddy the waters even further. Ultimately, the accusation could force to Brown to move forward with Pittsburgh, though fences will have to be mended between him and the organization.
Keith Butler Takes On Bigger Role
- Steelers DC Keith Butler will assume more responsibility next season. The team will not replace Joey Porter as outside linebackers coach, instead having Butler directly oversee that position in addition to his defensive coordinator duties, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Butler, who will enter his fifth year as Pittsburgh’s DC after being the team’s linebackers coach for 12 years, joins OC Randy Fichtner in doubling as a position coach. Fichtner still coaches the Steelers’ quarterbacks.
Antonio Brown Reiterates Trade Demand; Latest On Bell, Shazier
For the past few weeks, it feels like we have been getting daily reports on the Antonio Brown saga in Pittsburgh, and the last several rumors we have heard on the matter have suggested that both sides may be open to continuing their relationship.
But Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports paints quite a different picture. He says that Brown has recently reiterated his trade demands via agent Drew Rosenhaus, and that Brown has refused to return calls from club owner Art Rooney II. Meanwhile, JLC reports that Brown has told his Pittsburgh teammates that he will never play for the Steelers again.
Brown has three years and $39MM left on his current contract, and despite this falling out with the Steelers, almost every team in the league would be happy to have him. He would prefer to be dealt to the 49ers, but the Steelers reportedly have no intention of allowing Brown to pursue a trade on his own. Instead, Pittsburgh will control the process, and team brass plans to talk to potential trade partners at the scouting combine in a few weeks. The Steelers of course prefer to trade Brown to an NFC club, and they will not deal him to one of their bigger AFC rivals. They also still hope to get at least a first-round pick for him.
Meanwhile, La Canfora writes that the Steelers still plan to put the transition tag on Le’Veon Bell, who sat out the entire 2018 season. That is in keeping with what we have been hearing for months, but it obviously does not mean that Bell will be back in Pittsburgh. It will simply be the precursor to a tag-and-trade scenario, and JLC names the Jets and Eagles as potential destinations. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com confirms that the Steelers are contemplating the transition tag, and he even suggests that Bell could return to the Steelers, but that is difficult to fathom at this point.
Finally, La Canfora confirms what we have recently heard with respect to Ryan Shazier. Shazier’s rookie contract is up, and the team has indicated that it plans to re-sign him even though there is no chance he will be able to play in 2019, if ever. JLC says the two sides are working on a one-year pact, and that it will not take long for that to come to fruition.
Latest On Antonio Brown, Steelers
For a while now it has seemed like Antonio Brown and the Steelers parting ways at some point this offseason is a foregone conclusion, but that might not be the case. When Steelers owner Art Rooney II spoke again last week he used a much softer and less definite tone, and now we have more reason to believe a reunion isn’t impossible. 
Brown made his first public appearance since this saga began yesterday from the Super Bowl, and in his brief comments he didn’t rule out returning to Pittsburgh, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Brown said he just wants to win, and emphasized that it “doesn’t matter where.” Brown didn’t elaborate much further but it’s interesting given the way Rooney publicly softened his stance recently.
“There has been contact between both sides, though it’s unclear whether Brown has spoken directly with Rooney”, Fowler writes. Sources told Fowler that Brown is “open to thriving in a new offense if that’s the path the Steelers choose”, which seems to suggest Brown isn’t demanding a trade. As Fowler points out, Brown has solely communicated through social media since the season ended up until this point, so these comments are significant.
It was also reported just a few days ago that the relationship remains solid between Brown and some members of the front office. For a while it seemed like the bridge had been burned, and if he does return it’ll definitely take a lot of work from Mike Tomlin to mend things in the locker room. Brown coming back to the Steelers is clearly picking up some steam, but there’s still plenty of time for things to reverse course yet again.
Ryan Shazier Wants To Stay With Steelers
Ryan Shazier wants to play football again, but he’ll technically be a free agent in March. When/if he returns to the field, he says he’d ideally like to suit up for the Steelers, as Ed Bouchette of the Post-Gazette writes. 
“Really nothing has been decided,” Shazier said. “I definitely want to be with the Steelers. I was drafted here and everything’s been going great. I just love the atmosphere, I love the family aspect of it, but I also love the way they do business. So I definitely want to stay.”
Shazier was in the film room with the Steelers throughout the 2018 season and attended team meetings, even though he was on the PUP list. There’s likely a similar plan in place for 2019 – recently, team president Art Rooney II said he’s working on a way to keep Shazier in the fold on a new deal.
For now, Shazier is taking things day-by-day. He’s already regained the ability to walk, but he has a ways to go before he can resume football activities.
“I have a time frame in my head, but I haven’t really told anybody yet,” the linebacker said. “At the end of the day I’m taking it one step at a time. I’m a lot closer to my goal than I was when I got hurt.”
Steelers, Antonio Brown Still In Talks
Although the odds Antonio Brown is wearing a different uniform are still fairly decent, the All-Pro wide receiver continues to talk with members of the Steelers front office.
The Steelers have yet to grant Brown or agent Drew Rosenhaus permission to seek a trade. During this time, however, Brown has maintained a steady dialogue with some Steelers personnel executives, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com notes (video link), adding that the relationship remains solid between Brown and some members of the front office.
However, Brown has not discussed his situation with Kevin Colbert or Mike Tomlin, Rapoport adds. Nor has Brown returned Art Rooney II‘s phone calls since the season ended, Mark Kaboly of The Athletic notes (subscription required).
As of Monday, Brown’s preference is still to be traded. Brown has been most connected to the 49ers, the latest link being a Photoshopped image of a No. 84 49ers jersey. But not much has developed on that front since rumors the Steelers might initiate trade talks surfaced.
Brown and Tomlin obviously did not leave things in a good place after the season ended. But Rooney appears to have softened his stance about the 30-year-old superstar returning to Pittsburgh in 2019. Brown still has some support in the Steelers’ locker room as well. Rooney, however, added the caveat of likely needing to hear some sort of an apology from Brown for his Week 17 actions if the parties will move forward together.
Smith-Schuster Suffers Injury In Pro Bowl
- The Steelers exercised Bud Dupree‘s fifth-year option last May but have not decided on his long-term status with the team, per Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Dupree collected 5.5 sacks this season and has 20 in his career but has not lived up to his first-round billing. Dupree’s option price is $9.23MM. It would not be surprising if neither Dupree nor 2016 first-round pick Artie Burns inked second contracts with the Steelers, Fittipaldo writes. Burns’ fifth-year option decision is due in May. Considering Burns played just 308 snaps this season and will carry an option cost of close to $10MM, it would be incredibly surprising if Pittsburgh exercised it.
- JuJu Smith-Schuster suffered an injury in Sunday’s Pro Bowl. While the Associated Press notes the injury that caused the Steelers wideout to leave the game was just a bruised knee, the second-year wideout was limping en route to the AFC team bus. Smith-Schuster may be on the verge of becoming Pittsburgh’s centerpiece receiver, should Antonio Brown be dealt. It doesn’t sound like he’ll be in danger of missing OTA time, however.
Latest On Antonio Brown, Steelers
Another day, another report regarding Antonio Brown‘s future. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport provides the latest update (via Twitter): the Steelers have yet to give Brown and/or his agent permission to pursue a trade. While a “fresh start is preferred” by the wideout, the team is still in complete control of the situation.
However, while the team hasn’t allowed Brown’s party to seek a trade, it doesn’t sound like the team is against a deal. Rapoport notes that the Steelers are “exploring trade options,” and the wideout will predictably “draw significant interest” on the market. To add more confusion to the situation, Brown apparently hasn’t closed the door on returning to the organization; Rapoport notes that the wideout has expressed that sentiment to those he’s close with in the organization.
Our last Brown update came earlier this week, when owner Art Rooney II seemingly softened his tone on the receiver’s potential return. Previously, Rooney seemed to close the door on Brown playing in Pittsburgh next season, telling reporters that it’s “hard to envision” Brown being with the team in training camp.
As our own Dallas Robinson noted earlier this week, the Steelers will incur more than $21MM in dead money on their salary cap and gain just over $1MM in new space if the cut or trade Brown before June 1st. If he’s designated as a post-June 1 cut or traded after that date, Pittsburgh will take on roughly $7MM in dead money in 2019 and ~$14MM in 2020. Brown is also due a $2.5MM roster bonus on March 17, so the team could look to deal him before that date.
The 30-year-old had another productive season in 2018, hauling in 104 receptions for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns. However, he was benched for Week 17 after missing the team’s Saturday walkthrough, and subsequent reports indicated that there was major tension between the player and the franchise.
Latest On Antonio Brown, Steelers
As we await a resolution to the ongoing Antonio Brown saga with the Steelers, we have a new interesting piece today. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com conducted interviews with “nearly 20 former or current teammates of Brown”, to help figure out what went wrong between Brown and the team. While most that Fowler spoke with seem to acknowledge he’s unlikely to return to Pittsburgh, many spoke up in favor of Brown and said he’s being cast in an unfair light by the media.
Fowler writes that Brown “was — and in many ways still is — beloved in the Steelers’ locker room”, and that the situation is more complex and nuanced than it may appear. Many of Brown’s teammates have publicly lobbied for him to stay, and if the recent rumor is true that the Steelers aren’t getting the kind of trade offers they were hoping for, perhaps they do find a way to make it work after all. For what it’s worth, Steelers owner Art Rooney did adopt a slightly more conciliatory tone in his most recent statements to the press.
Latest On Steelers, Antonio Brown
Steelers owner Art Rooney II hasn’t been shy while opining on the status of disgruntled wideout Antonio Brown, first noting it’s “hard to envision” Brown being with the team in training camp before admitting there are “not that many signs out there that” Brown is going to offer any sort of apology for his Week 17 meltdown. But Rooney used a slightly softer tone when discussing Brown this week, as Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune writes.
“There are a lot of factors we have to take into account on it,” Rooney said. “We’d have to sit down with Antonio and understand where he is and make sure he understands where we are. There is some work to do before we figure that out.”
If Brown is cut or traded before June 1, the Steelers will incur more than $21MM in dead money on their salary cap and gain just over $1MM in new space. If he’s designated as a post-June 1 cut or traded after that date, Pittsburgh will take on roughly $7MM in dead money in 2019 and ~$14MM in 2020.
As Rutter notes, Brown is due a $2.5MM roster bonus on March 17, so the Steelers would likely trade him before paying out that total. Trades can’t be officially processed until the new league year begins on March 13, but agreements can be in place before then.