Former NFL, Steelers Great Antonio Brown Is Ordered To Be Arrested...Again

Former Pittsburgh Steelers great, Antonio Brown is making headlines again for all the wrong reasons. The star receiver during his tenure in Pittsburgh has been in all kinds of legal trouble in the summer of 2023 with cases related to his AFL team. This time however, the situation involves a missed child support payment. 

The 2010 sixth-round draft pick by Pittsburgh made seven Pro Bowl appearances and earned four consecutive AP First Team All-Pro nominations from 2014 to 2017. He and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger enjoyed tremendous statistical success and were one of the top quarterback and receiver duos of the 2010s. His talent on the football field was undeniable and to Seattle Seahawks pass-catcher D.K. Metcalf, it was enough to name him the best receiver of all-time over the likes of Randy Moss and Jerry Rice.

According to TMZ, the former star is being called to pay child support fees to his ex-girlfriend Wiltrice Jackson or face jail time in the state of Florida. The outlet reports that according to court documents in Miami-Dade County, a judge issued a ruling on Aug. 9 stating that Brown had missed a payment of $15,000 to Jackson who is the mother of their 15-year-old daughter, Antanyiah. Per the filings, Brown can avoid jail time if he makes the initial payment, plus an extra $5,000 in legal fees. 

Jackson and Brown dated during his tenure with Pittsburgh and were reportedly involved in a domestic dispute with no arrests made in 2019 also per TMZ. The two were involved in a custody battle shortly after with Brown denying any wrongdoing and seeking majority time sharing and decision-making authority. 

It wouldn't be the only custody battle for Brown as another ex, Chelsie Kyriss filed a lawsuit in Florida in 2020 seeking full custody of their three kids. She alleged that Brown demonstrated an inability to make the best decisions for the children aged five, four, and two at the time. She also requested that Brown only be allowed to see the kids in a supervised environment. 

Former Steelers' Brown Not Good With Deadlines

This isn't the first time that Brown has struggled with making a child support payment on time. Back in April of 2023, TMZ reported that Brown had missed paying Jackson's child support fees and a Florida court issued a similar order for Brown's arrest. Brown avoided jail time by completing a payment of $33,260.58 to Florida which he posted to his personal Instagram page with the words "Everyone wants to see me fail that's why I have to be great."

Brown rose to great heights in Pittsburgh, but has been on a huge downward spiral ever since his trade to the then-Oakland Raiders. He never played a game for them and then played one game with the New England Patriots in 2019 before being released. He was briefly suspended by the league in 2020 before resurfacing as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He won a Super Bowl playing in eight regular season games and three postseason games. He was waived by the Buccaneers in 2021 after seven games and hasn't been in the league ever since.

Former teammate Ramon Foster had an interesting theory as to why Brown has become such a problem since his days in Pittsburgh and it all stems from the vicious hit he took from Vontaze Burfict in the 2016 AFC Wild Card game. While some people think that the possible brain damage he suffered on the play has led to his irrational decision-making, Foster posited that simply he gave up caring about anything after the hit.     

Whatever the reasons Brown continues to be in the news for all the wrong reasons and with how the pattern is going, he'll probably be in the headlines for more legal trouble in the future. 

Do you think Brown will ever learn to make payments on time? What do you think we'll see his name in the headlines for next time? Comment below!

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