Antonio Brown Deal: Pittsburgh Steelers, WR Agree To Restructured Contract

The Pittsburgh Steelers just made Antonio Brown’s deal/contract that much better for the 2016 NFL season.

According to ESPN, the Steelers dished out more money to their star wide receiver.

“The Pittsburgh Steelers rewarded their star receiver with a restructured contract that advances $4 million of 2017 money into this year’s $6.25 million base salary for a total of $10.25 million, according to ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.”

The 28-year-old Brown is coming off of a season in which he racked up 1,834 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. Proving that this was no fluke, Brown had 1,698 receiving yards and 13 TDs in 2014. Brown had the second most receiving yards in the NFL in 2015, he led the league in 2014, and he was second in the NFL in 2013 (1,499). Clearly, Brown has been a top WR in this league over the past few years, and that likely won’t change in the 2016 season.

Breakdown: #Steelers WR Antonio Brown gets $10.25M this year (with $8.975M signing bonus) and a promise of a new deal next year, source said

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 31, 2016

The Steelers are making the correct — and only — move by making this Antonio Brown deal happen before the season gets underway.

“You have to take care of your guys,” Brown said at the start of training camp, according to ESPN. “If a guy underperforms, you get rid of him. If a guy overperforms, you take care of him.”

And that’s exactly what the Steelers did. Not only are they giving him more money for 2016, but Pittsburgh is also promising him a new deal next season. That has to put the wide receiver at ease. He has shown his team his worth, and Pittsburgh is rewarding him in the form of more money.

Pittsburgh has just one game left in the preseason before it opens up the regular season against the Washington Redskins. The last preseason game of 2016 will be played against the Carolina Panthers.

This Antonio Brown deal happening or not, the Steelers are coming off of a season in which they finished with a 10-6 record. They won one playoff game against the Cincinnati Bengals before going down to the Denver Browns, a team that eventually won the Super Bowl.

If history repeats itself, Pittsburgh will compete for a playoff spot once again, and Brown will be a top WR in the NFL.

In ESPN‘s preseason power rankings, Pittsburgh came in at No. 6. A lot of that has to deal with the fact that Pittsburgh has one of the best quarterbacks in the game in Ben Roethlisberger. It, of course, has a solid running back in Le’Veon Bell as well, and arguably the best WR in the league in Brown. Unfortunately, Bell will start the season off by serving a suspension, but that could mean Brown gets more touches early on. For the record, the Carolina Panthers, Green Bay Packers, New England Patriots, Arizona Cardinals, and Seattle Seahawks were all ranked above the Steelers.

With the 2016 NFL season almost here, this Antonio Brown deal is coming at the perfect time. Now, Brown can get to work without contract talks on his mind.

If Brown can continue to play at an elite level, he will prove that he is worth every penny — and then some. Not to mention, while his numbers certainly pop off the page, it is important to note that he has also managed to stay healthy during this time. After all, he has played 16 games three seasons in a row.

With Roethlisberger back in action, expect this Antonio Brown deal to be completely worth it for Pittsburgh, as Roethlisberger will be connecting with Brown early and often in the 2016 season. Regarding an appearance in the Super Bowl, well, the fans will just have to wait for that one. Nonetheless, Pittsburgh makes the Super Bowl talks entering the season thanks to guys like Brown and Roethlisberger being back.

[Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images]