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For Steelers WR Antonio Brown, his words mean very little at this stage of the game

Antonio Brown is saying all the right things as the NFL season comes to a close, but his actions will be the ultimate factor in a hefty new contract.

NFL: AFC Divisional-Pittsburgh Steelers at Kansas City Chiefs Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

The Pittsburgh Steelers have one of, if not the, best wide receivers in the NFL on their roster in Antonio Brown, but my how the mighty have fallen in the past month. After Browns' Facebook Live fall out, the media fire storm was precipitous. Reports of him quitting on plays, running whatever route he wants and even caring more about his statistics than team success surfaced.

After having his name drug through the mud, Brown has been very outward in the past two weeks in an attempt to improve his image, but are their underlying tones to all of this madness?

Might the Steelers, who are very much in control of what is released through the media, have known what was being reported in hopes of lowering Brown’s price tag? Was Brown’s PR run leading up to the Super Bowl a counter to those measures?

Maybe that is a bit “conspiracy theorist”, but one thing is for sure — Antonio Brown’s words mean very little to me at this point. I don’t want to hear how he has “changed” and “will never do it again”. If he is a “Steeler for life” like he claims, then show it. Don’t say it, show it.

Here are some quotes from Brown in Mike Freeman’s 10-point stance article which are discussed in the above podcast:

"It was a dumb mistake," Brown said. "Can't believe I did it, and it won't happen again. I promise you that."

"The big thing I learned is that I have some growing up to do, and I'm going to do it," Brown said. "I learned a lot from it and will keep learning. I'm going to rebuild the trust with my teammates and my coaches. I promise you that, too."

"I'm a Steeler for life," Brown said.

Of course, it isn't entirely up to him, but Brown is too good for the Steelers to let go. At least, for the moment, it seems that way.

"My goal is always to get better every day," Brown said. "No one will ever outwork me. That's how it will always be for me. That will never change."

I discuss this more in the latest BTSC podcast “Steelers Hangout” above. Give it a listen in the player above, and follow all of the BTSC podcasts on iTunes by searching "The Standard is the Standard", as well as on several podcast apps for Android users.

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