Antonio Brown created countless highlights while he was a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers. While things did not end well for Brown with either the Steelers or the NFL in general, nobody can say he wasn’t one of the best players in the league during his prime. Not only was he a great wide receiver, but Brown served as a great punt and kick returner too. However, for all of his highlights, one of the plays Brown is most remembered for is a failure on special teams when he kicked the Cleveland Browns’ punter in the face.
On the first episode of his CTESPN Podcast, Brown talked to Tyreek Hill about his thought process right before he kicked punter Spencer Lanning.
“I’m running fast, and I’m like, ‘I’m about to score.’ You know when you see the punter is the last guy? I’m like, ‘I’m about to pull a Reggie Bush moment, I’m about to try to jump over him.’ Remember Reggie Bush jumped over a guy then scored? I’m like, ‘This is my moment, I’ve been watching this highlight,’ and I think I jumped too early,” Brown said.
The Bush play Brown is likely referencing is from a Week 7 game in 2009 when the Saints played the Dolphins. Bush took an end-around and leaped over a defender to score a touchdown for the Saints, so the scenario is a little different, but the highlight is so impressive that it’s obvious why Brown would want to recreate it. However, maybe if he would have thought more about scoring than creating a viral moment, the end result of the play would have been better. Instead of talking about what a great return it was, everyone only talks about Brown’s bizarre decision.
At least now fans have an answer as to why Brown decided to do that. There was no malicious intent to harm Lanning or embarrass the Browns. It was all about Brown wanting to create another highlight. If that was Brown’s thought process for many of the plays he made throughout his career, then maybe it shouldn’t be scrutinized too much considering how many unbelievable plays he made. He probably should have stuck to making highlight catches rather than trying to replicate spectacular moments from running backs though. Either way, the Steelers went on to beat the Browns in that game, so it doesn’t really matter. Fans should just be happy he didn’t run off the field after that play.
