Martavis Bryant has come an awful long way since he publicly demanded that the Pittsburgh Steelers trade him back in October. Suddenly, the wide receiver wants to be back with the team in 2018.
Bryant, who is entering the final season of his rookie contract, told reporters this week that he will not ask the Steelers to trade him this offseason. Why? Because he wants to keep contending for championships.
Martavis Bryant told reporters he wants to be back next year and will be ready for OTAs. What’s changed from mid season? For one, Bryant acknowledges it would be hard to start over and wants to win a Super Bowl here.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) January 15, 2018
This is the same Bryant who said before the trade deadline that he wants out of Pittsburgh if he doesn’t get the ball more, and not much changed after that. He averaged around six targets and just under five receptions per game in the six games he played after making the demand. His workload increased over the final three weeks when Antonio Brown was out with a calf injury.
Perhaps Bryant realized that he has little to no leverage. He’s under contract for just over $700,000 in 2018, so the Steelers would much rather keep him and get whatever they can from him. If he wants a big contract, he’ll have to play well next season heading into free agency.
Bryant created some tension for the Steelers when he criticized a rookie teammate in an Instagram comment, but the two have since settled their differences. If he shows up to camp with a positive attitude, there’s no reason Pittsburgh will look to trade or release the 26-year-old.
