Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown chose early on in the offseason not to holdout even though he knows good and well he’s severely underpaid. Sure, he may have missed the first voluntary workout session of 2015 to get a little attention, but outside of that, he’s said and done all of the right things this offseason.
Upon arriving to Saint Vincent College in Latrobe on Saturday, Brown talked about his decision to not holdout this year even though he has three years left on his current contract that he signed in 2012.
“Hold outs never go well,” said Brown, according to NFL.com. “Just look at history. It always ends badly. It wouldn’t be the best decision. I make a lot of money. I pull up to camp in Rolls-Royces.”
I might’ve left that last part about the Rolls-Royce out if I were Brown, but regardless, he certainly is going about things the right way in his hopes of getting a new deal before his old one expires. Even though wide receivers Dez Bryant and Demaryius Thomas both signed five-year, $70 million deals with their respective teams earlier this month, Brown doesn’t seem to be letting that get to him.
“You know you get caught up thinking about the future you lose sight of the present,” Brown said. “What I’m here to do today is to show how hard I’ve been working, showcase I can still be the best in the world and help my team win football games.”
Should Brown wind up having another season in 2015 like the one he had in 2014, the Steelers shouldn’t be surprised if he decides to make some sort of extended statement next offseason such as a holdout. That’s a problem for 2016, however, and Brown seems to be ready for another productive training camp and season.
