'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
What's the story?
Pittsburgh Steelers' star wide receiver, Antonio Brown, has today made his intentions clear of getting traded by the franchise as he feels it's the 'time to move on and forward' as per his latest tweet.
In case you didn't know...
Reports started to emerge in late December that the 4-time first team All-Pro missed practices in gameweek 17 due to a heated exchange with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. As a result, the Steelers benched Brown in their final game of the regular season against the Cincinnati Bengals, despite a playoff spot on the line.
The Steelers did win the game but failed to make it to the playoffs because of results elsewhere not falling in their favor. However, this was also the beginning of a massive fallout between the star wide receiver and the Pittsburgh franchise.
The heart of the matter
It is rather known that the Pittsburgh Steelers have been considering their options regarding Brown since the fallout. Steelers' president Art Rooney II did open up about the fact that apart from releasing the player, they would be open to all other ideas about the matter.
"We'll look at all the options. We're not going to release him, that's not on the table. But I will say all other options are on the table."
Rooney had insisted back in January that reconciliation with Brown was highly unlikely and that seems to have been confirmed following Brown's tweet earlier today:
The round 6 pick from the 2010 NFL Draft hasn't held back a lot either, dropping subtle hints about a possible trade from time to time on his Twitter handle in the recent past.
What's next?
The impending trade, of course! The Steelers have already made it clear that they will not be waiving Brown. The 9-year veteran had signed a 5-year contract back in 2017 that would run till 2022. Given the fact that he still has 3 years left on his contract, the Steelers could still prize valuable assets for Brown.
However, the Heinz Field outfit might want to trade him before 17th March so as to avoid paying him a $2.5 million roster bonus that Brown will be owed come 17 March 2019. Only time will tell where Brown eventually lands up.
