For the entirety of the 2018 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers had to deal with the prospect of having Le’Veon Bell not signing his franchise tag and electing to miss the entire year.
During the last week of the season, the team had to deal with Antonio Brown being suspended for the final game and going on a tirade that lasted for months until he was ultimately traded to the Oakland Raiders.
The two playmakers contributed a combined 2,409 touches for 19,322 yards and 116 touchdowns in their years in Pittsburgh and now they both play for other franchises.
On Monday, head coach Mike Tomlin finally spoke up for the first time since their departure.
“I think it has been highly chronicled, and I think it has been too chronicled,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Monday, via Mark Kaboly of TheAthletic.com. “Some things have been said that may or may not have been true. All I know is neither one of those guys are members of our team anymore.
“Relationships run their course, and the fact that neither one of them are here speaks to that.”
He then proceeded to throw shots at his former stars:
“We can’t do this with hostages, man. We need volunteers,” Tomlin said. “We need good players, good guys who want to be here and if guys can’t check those boxes, it’s probably best for all parties involved to go our separate ways.”
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Before he ultimately got what he want, Brown stated numerous times about the lack of respect going around in the Steelers organization.
“I don’t know in what ways you are referring, but certainly I treat people fairly,” Tomlin said. “I don’t aspire to treat everybody exactly the same. That’s just the reality of how I function.”
In losing both of these dynamic players, the team also got a bit quieter.
