Pittsburgh Steelers fans may think they don’t need Antonio Brown because they already have a top wide receiver in JuJu Smith-Schuster, but one of the best players in the NFL at the position does not think it will be nearly that simple.
Shortly after Antonio Brown took to Twitter on Tuesday to bid farewell to Steeler Nation, Thomas shared his thoughts on how Pittsburgh might look without the seven-time Pro Bowler. The New Orleans Saints star does not think it will be pretty.
If @AB84 really leaving man Pittsburgh about to be funny looking next year The truth always come to the light pay attention. He opened up everything for the passing game and still got his.
— Michael Thomas (@Cantguardmike) February 12, 2019
There’s certainly some truth to that. You could argue that Brown became the 1B to Smith-Schuster’s 1A in 2018, but A.B. still hauled in 104 passes for 1,297 yards and a whopping 15 touchdowns. The double-teams he demanded on certain plays helped open things up for Smith-Schuster, and it will be extremely difficult for the Steelers to replace that in their offense.
Brown remains under contract with the Steelers despite his farewell message, so he is probably just trying to force the team’s hand. It’s safe to assume Pittsburgh executives want to trade him because of how big of a headache he has become, but they’re not going to give him away.
