All-Pro wide receiver Antonio Brown recently tweeted “Goodbye” to Steelers fans, thanking them for a wonderful 9 years in Pittsburgh. Once the tweet had gone out it came to light that Brown formally requested a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Antonio Brown’s Goodbye tweet to Pittsburgh Fans
The big question in Detroit is whether or not Bob Quinn and the Fords should pursue bring Antonio Brown to the motor city via trade. Do you want to see Brown in Honolulu Blue and Silver?
Before we get into trade scenarios and how I feel, let’s take a look at his stats. Brown has gone over 1200 yards for six consecutive seasons, while hauling in 10+ TDs in 4 of the last 5 with a career high 15 touchdown receptions in 2018. One the flip side Brown’s targets and receptions have gone down the last three seasons in comparison to 2014 and 2015.
A look at Browns career statistics
The one major aspect that scares me in regards to trading for the explosive wide out is his attitude. As we’ve all seen through social media Antonio seems to be quite a diva, and I worry that if he couldn’t get things done with a HOF quarterback with a winning franchise what will he be like in Detroit with a team who hasn’t done anything for 50 years with a quarterback who hasn’t won anything of significance in his 10 year career? BUT, there are rumors circulating around that Brown’s attitude can be linked to the poor treatment he received from his current QB Ben Roethlisberger.
There have been two scenarios laid out as to what could happen on the trade market in landing Brown. The first is that Pittsburgh is asking for a first rounder in return for their wide out. If this ends up being the only way to acquire Brown I DO NOT want the Lions to make the move. I would rather hold on to the No. 8 overall pick and pick up an impact defensive player or place more resources into the offensive line rather than taking the risk on a wide receiver in what appears to be a weak draft class anyway.
The second scenario is where I bite and make the trade. Many NFL executives have been quoted saying that they’d be willing to give up a Day 2 pick (second of third rounder) and it could possibly slip to a fourth rounder to acquire Brown; and many feel that this is fair market value and what the Steelers will get in return.
If this ends up being the case, Bob Quinn must make the trade. He’s been quoted saying “we need to do a better job putting better players around him and scheming things up better to use his talent” referring to Lions starting QB Matthew Stafford; so why wouldn’t you use your second or third round draft pick to acquire arguably the best wide receiver in the game? It is my belief that the Lions are going to use one of their second day picks to draft a receiver anyway, so why not pull the trigger and get a dynamic player like Brown.
Brown’s salary breakdown for his current contract.
Brown does come with a significant price tag, but, we all know that NFL teams can find money in a number of ways (i.e. contract restructures, releases, etc.).
The addition of Antonio Brown would also bring a major increase in the skill positions for the Lions offense as well. Lining Brown up with Marvin Jones and Kenny Golladay will create a potent receiving core that will give defensive coordinators around the league a headache. Brown will draw more double teams opening up Golladay more often down the field. Defensive coordinators will need to pick their poison each week; they won’t be able to focus on just one receiver, rather, they will have to try to come up with ways to shut more than one down. With a receiving core like this it would also open up many things in the running game with new Offensive Coordinator Darrell Bevell.
As a Central Michigan Chippewa I would love to see Bob Quinn and the Ford family strike a deal to bring Brown to the motor city. I remember sitting in Kelly/Shorts stadium in Mt. Pleasant hauling in touchdowns in front of the “Brown Town” banner in the student section end zone. Plus, let’s not forget, Brown recently donated heated benches to the Central Michigan Football Program, so coming home to Michigan might be just what he needs.