The Pittsburgh Steelers are full of memories from former wide receiver Antonio Brown, both good and bad. During his playing career in the Steel City, he was undoubtedly the best wideout in the NFL due to his endless work ethic and lack of a true weakness on the field. Obviously, his one problem was his behavior, as he would constantly make poor choices when he was not on the field doing his job. If it weren't for that, we may be talking about the generational talent in the same light as we do with the likes of Jerry Rice and Calvin Johnson.
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Steelers' former head coach Mike Tomlin talks with former wide receiver Antonio Brown as the team warms up prior to a home game at then-Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, PA.
While making a recent appearance on The Pump Fake, former offensive coordinator Todd Haley broke down what led up to one of Brown's many viral moments.
"Eric Weddle, who's a really smart player wherever he was, he kind of tricked Ben [Roethlisberger] a little bit pre-snap," Haley said. "So [Antonio Brown] runs this route; I call it. There's not anybody within 50 yards of him, but Ben got fooled by the coverage because of what Weddle did, so he just stayed frontside and threw a throw-and-catch for six yards. AB is standing by himself. I mean, it's going to be a 60-yard touchdown. I'm jumping up and down on the sideline when I saw the look, I'm so excited."
As great as Ben Roethlisberger was, nobody would call him perfect. Of course, he'd miss a read here and there, even though that was a big miss to Brown. He didn't expect the star wideout to be as open as he was, so he tried a six-yard checkdown. That happened on a third down, so the Steelers had to quickly come off the field. That's when Brown absolutely lost it.
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Former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin speaks with Antonio Brown during the game.
Haley continued with the story and explained exactly how Brown reacted to not getting the free score.
"I was kind of like AB. I was like, 'What? We're throwing it to the other side,'" Haley said. "AB, Gatorade coolers being thrown, I'm trying to calm him down, he wants to fight me, he wants to fight Ben, and I'm like, 'The play was for you, AB. Why are you mad at me?' It's probably the most open I've seen a receiver in the NFL, really against a legit team like the Ravens."
There is no doubt that something like that is infuriating. Even for a generational talent like Brown, touchdowns are not easy to get in the NFL. They are especially tough to get against a team's most hated division rival like the Baltimore Ravens in this case. He won the play and had a wide open touchdown that would have put Baltimore on the ropes almost immediately, but a little deke by Eric Weddle ruined everything.
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Former Pittsburgh Steelers wideout Antonio Brown smiles as he takes in an AFL game.
Luckily, the Steelers would go on to beat the Ravens in convincing fashion, so that miss did not end up costing them in the end. After that play, Pittsburgh put up 16 points just in the second quarter on its way to a 26-9 victory to take an early lead in the AFC North standings, which it would never relinquish. The only harm done was to Brown's ego and mindset after that big miss.
Steelers Had No Idea How Close They Were To Dumping Brown
After that 2017 season, Brown would only play in one more tumultuous season for the Steelers, and everything went downhill from there. He would at least win a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a few years later, but that was just a break from the constant chaos of his time after Pittsburgh.
What do you think about Haley explaining the Gatorade cooler incident? Was Brown right to be so frustrated? Let us know on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.
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