This week, Antonio Brown, will be officially traded from the Pittsburgh Steelers to the Oakland Raiders.The Steelers will receive a third and fifth round draft pick in the 2019 NFL draft from the Raiders. Brown will receive a new 3-year contract from Oakland worth up to $54.125 million in which $30.125 million is guaranteed money. His previous deal with Pittsburgh had 3 years and $38.9 million left with no guaranteed money on it. Basically, Brown got exactly what he wanted in a fresh start with a different organization, more money per year, and guaranteed money.

Brown’s Career Highlights and Awards:

Brown is a seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018). He was named to the NFL’s First Team All Pro four times (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017), and he was elected to the Second Team All Pro in 2013. He led the league in receiving yards twice (2014, 2017), and he was the NFL leader in receptions two times (2014, 2015), while also having the most receiving touchdowns in 2018. By looking at his career stats it is easy to see why he is one of the best wide outs in the National Football League right now.

Along with the Good Comes the Bad:

It is well documented that Brown can be a major distraction and detriment to his team. He is constantly complaining, fighting with teammates, and making demands from his coach, front office, and their players. He has also been known to use social media platforms to get unwanted attention through his posts. Hopefully with a clean slate provided to him through the Raiders he will focus on helping his new team win, and he will stop his self-centered and selfish behaviors that he exhibited in the steel city.

What Brown Brings to Oakland:  

Obviously, the athlete brings amazing talent and on the field production to the Raiders. He is consistently one of the best pass catchers in the NFL. He will provide Derek Carr with a deep threat through this downfield speed as well as his ability to pick up yards after the catch often leading to touchdowns.

Brown is considered one of the best route runners in the league which should translate into helping his team convert on third downs and move the chains throughout the course of an offensive drive. He rarely drops passes, and he does not fumble very much at all. This should cut down on drive ending mistakes and turnovers which have plagued the Raiders over the last several seasons.

Moving Forward for Pittsburgh:

Without his services, the Steelers will have to rely on other wide receivers to get the job done on the field for the veteran quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger. Their number-one wide out will now be JuJu Smith-Schuster who is a solid NFL wide receiver.

They will also be asking for James Washington to step up as big play maker for Pittsburgh in the near future. Washington is 2018 second round draft pick with a lot of talent and potential, but he has underperformed so far in his young career with the Steelers.

They also have a core veteran slot receiver in Ryan Switzer to rely on during the 2019-2020 season. The Steelers may or may not have the services of Darrius Heyward-Bey, Justin Hunter, and Eli Rogers as all three of them are unrestricted free agents at the moment.