Steelers president defends Brown amid controversy
Antonio Brown is undergoing a turbulent month, but Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II came to his defense Tuesday.
Brown drew criticism for posting a video on Facebook Live of the team's locker room following a Jan. 15 playoff victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. Head coach Mike Tomlin referred to the Patriots as "assholes" during the video, and the All-Pro wide receiver was subsequently sanctioned by the team.
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In spite of the controversy, Rooney went to bat for his superstar.
"Antonio is a good guy, a good person. I enjoy him personally. He's someone his teammates like to have on the team," Rooney said to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
"He's another player we’re hoping to ... have here for a long time."
Brown remains arguably the NFL's best wide receiver, recording 106 catches for 1,284 yards and 12 touchdowns in 15 games this season, and he's paramount to the Steelers' future success.
Although Brown irked his head coach and some of his teammates, he remains indispensable for the AFC runner-up.