Pittsburgh Steelers News & Rumors

Steelers wide receiver Martavis Bryant was told by team brass that he should expect to be inactive on Sunday (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com). This comes on the heels of word that Bryant was practicing with the scout team on Wednesday (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler). 

When asked why he won’t be playing this weekend, Bryant told reporters (Twitter link) that it all stems from “social media.” Earlier this week, Bryant got into it with a fan on Instagram who asserted that teammate JuJu Smith-Schuster was the superior wide receiver.

“JuJu is no where near better than me, fool,” Bryant wrote. “All they need to do is give me what I want and y’all can have JuJu and whoever else.”

Of course, that social media spat came in the midst of Bryant’s very vocal dissatisfaction with his role in the offense. Bryant’s reps requested a trade earlier this month, but the Steelers say they will not part with him between now and the Halloween deadline.

For now, Bryant has been demoted in practice while Justin Hunter takes his reps.

Martavis Bryant is unhappy with his role in the Steelers’ offense, but the team says he’s not going anywhere. On Tuesday, coach Mike Tomlin told reporters that he is “not available” via trade, adding that the team has invested too much in Bryant to bail on him (Twitter link via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). 

Tomlin’s assertion comes just after Bryant made some very pointed comments to ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson (Facebook link). Bryant says that he hopes to make things work in Pittsburgh, but he also says that he needs to see an uptick in targets right away.

“By the end of whenever the trade deadline is,” Bryant said when asked about his own personal deadline for a change in the offense. “I mean if things don’t get better, than I got to go.”

Bryant says that he wants to have a bigger role in offense, in part, because of his desire to support his family. Bryant will be eligible for free agency following the 2018 season.

“I feel like it’s going to come down to whether we make changes or not, whether they try to include me more or not. If they don’t try to include me more and continue to do the same thing, then I want out period,” Bryant said. “I love my team. I love my brothers. I love being here. I love the city, but I have a family and everything going on now is about taking care of my family.”

Regardless, the Steelers say they’re sticking with Bryant, even though he took the unusual step of calling out sick on Monday with an illness. The tentative plan is for Bryant to return to the Steelers for Wednesday’s meetings and practice, a source tells ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler (Twitter link).

Martavis Bryant had only two catches on Sunday, but he found himself in the news when it was reported that he demanded a trade. Soon after, Bryant took to Twitter to say that he is “happy to be a Steeler.” On Monday morning, he specifically denied making a trade request (Twitter link via Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette).

There’s no way to know for sure whether Bryant’s camp did request a trade, but either way it sounds like things have been patched up between the two sides. Bryant’s main gripe was that his role has been downsized in the Steelers’ offense. Starting on Sunday’s game against the Bengals, we may see that change.

Bryant has shown the ability to pick up yards after the catch and at 6’4″ he is also able to pull down passes in the end zone, even in traffic. Between 2014 and 2015, Bryant had 14 touchdowns. Through six games this year, however, he has only one score.

Even if Bryant does push for a deal between now and the deadline, the Steelers do not seem inclined to trade him.

Martavis Bryant wants the Steelers to trade him. But that doesn’t mean they will. Early indications are that the Steelers do not plan on moving the wide receiver, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. 

Bryant has been frustrated with the size of his role thus far in 2017. Still, the Steelers value him highly. Bryant has proven to be a valuable complement to Antonio Brown, as evidenced by his career 16.6 yards per catch average. Trouble is, he has only 17 catches for 231 yards and one score through six games this year. The 25-year-old (26 in December) is currently on pace for less grabs, yards, and TDs than he had in 2015, and he played in only eleven games that year.

The Steelers, who are now 4-2 after topping the Chiefs on Sunday, seem determined to move forward with Bryant, even if he has soured on them somewhat. Ultimately, Bryant’s trade demand could spark offensive coordinator Todd Haley and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to send more passes in his direction.

Martavis Bryant wants out of Pittsburgh. The wide receiver recently requested a trade, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com hears (Twitter link). Rapoport adds that his teammates and coaches are “well aware that he’s unhappy.” 

Bryant was suspended for all of last season after repeated violations of the substance abuse policy. The league granted him full reinstatement in September, allowing him to get back to work with the Steelers. However, he found that his role was downsized this season. After just two catches on Sunday, Bryant is itching to get more targets elsewhere.

Bryant, 25, has only appeared in 27 out of 54 possible regular season games over the course of his career, but he has been productive in his limited action. Heading into this week’s game against the Chiefs, he boasted a career average of 17.3 yards per catch over the last three years.

If the Steelers want to grant Bryant’s request, they’ll have to move quick. The NFL’s trade deadline is on Oct. 31.