Some fun stories from former Steelers about Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown as he looks to celebrate another birthday as a Steelers player:
Ola Adeniyi: “The media though tends to make little things big.. I just can’t tell you … I mean, I know AB. In the locker room, the love and support he gave me as an undrafted free agent. That friendship and brotherhood he gave me is because of the person he is. We’d go out to eat together every Friday. A guy of that caliber – he’s going to be competitive and want the ball. Every person would. But that’s not my business.”
Justin Brown: “I remember – my second year I was training with Antonio Brown and we were at his house. His chef prepared us dinner and we were talking, when out of nowhere he asked me “Justin, who are you?” It caught me off guard. I told him I was a football player. He said “No you’re not – you’re more than that. Don’t let the game do that to you.”
Al Hajj Shabazz: “I walked to work every day too. I finally decided to buy myself a nice car and I parked in way in back of the stadium lot. I didn’t want anyone to make a big deal out of it. Well, Antonio got me – he saw m park and told me I needed to park that car in the front where people could see it. That I worked too hard for this -from the back of the depth chart to playing games. I should show that I made it. He was excited for me and went into the meetings announcing that I got my new car. He didn’t want me to be so low-key!”
Scottie Montgomery: “AB shocked me about how quickly he learned to dominate. He turned into the most dominant figure in the game on the back side. People say I loved Antonio – they used to say he was like my son. I did love Antonio the first time I saw him – but I didn’t think he could be that good that fast. The defensive guys used to say I’d do anything for him – cheat for him and script plays in practice to give him an advantage. But the truth is I was surprised at how fast he developed. He learned the playbook – and he was available. He stayed healthy. A lot of that goes into it – to becoming that dominant that fast.”
Chad Spann: “One of my biggest mentors I had when I arrived in Pittsburgh was someone I already had a little bit of history with. Antonio Brown was a wide receiver who I played numerous times in college since we were in the same conference. Also, His father, Touchdown Eddie Brown, was my position coach in high school. I learned a lot on and off the field from both of the Browns.”
Chris Rainey: “I spoke to Antonio Brown – he’d tell me what it was like when he was a rookie. I just followed what he did.”
Derek Moye: “One sticks out – at the rookie dinner, how Antonio Brown had such a good time – he was telling a lot of jokes and stories – ones I can’t tell! But you could see him coming out of his shell – he was hilarious.”
Amos Jones: “Antonio was a great receiver and returner but he also was great at covering kicks as a rookie. When he was a rookie I remember him losing his shoe halfway downfield but he never slowed down and got in on the tackle!”
CJ Goodwin: “Antonio Brown was one of the funniest people I have ever met. Every day it was something new with his crazy outfits. He was a real genuine dude – nice. He would joke with you if you came in with flashy outfits – “You can’t afford that!” he’d say!”
Isaac Blakeney: “Well, in the wide receiver room, Antonio Brown and DHB were the most influencing. They gave me critiques – on the good and bad. Especially DHB – we were competing for a spot but he still helped me. They both helped with the little things – drink more water, stretching – things that football itself doesn’t teach you – they stayed on me about those things. Antonio was hilarious – his work ethic he pushed us. I was there during his contract negotiations. He was always joking around…”
David Gilreath: “ I watched Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders. Watched Brown run ghost routes after practice by himself. “
Wes Lyons: “I thought Antonio Brown and Emanuel Sanders were a big help throughout camp my first year. We would study the playbook together every night when we went back to our rooms after practice. “
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