Brown climbing ladder of elite WRs

By Scott Brown, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, November 24, 2011

Numbers might better illustrate Antonio Brown's emergence than words.

The 22nd wide receiver taken in the 2010 draft has 18 third-down receptions, which ranks third in the NFL.

His 282 receiving yards on third down are also third-most in the league, and that statistic is another reason why Brown has staked his claim to the No. 2 standing on a deep and talented receiving corps.

"I always knew I was capable," Brown said. "It's a league of opportunities, and that's all it's about."

Taking advantage of his opportunities is not the only reason why Brown, who turned 23 in July, has earned the trust of Ben Roethlisberger. And when the Steelers quarterback called Brown a "gnat" earlier this week he meant it as the highest compliment.

"If you watch us during practice, he's constantly by my side," Roethlisberger said. "He's just always right there and it's good because he's coming to me asking 'OK, Ben on this play do you want me to do this, do you want me to do this?' And I think that's awesome because I know where he's going to be and that's one of the biggest reasons why I think we've been so successful on third down."

Read more: Steelers' Brown climbing ladder of elite WRs - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/steelers/s_768894.html#ixzz1ebCBwOcJ

I really like Brown would be sweet if the Steelers can keep both Brown and Wallace.

effyou515 wrote:

I really like Brown would be sweet if the Steelers can keep both Brown and Wallace.

Yep.

If Ward doesn't return next season, I think we have a better chance of locking up Wallace. We'll have him for at least one more season.

BGSU A Dub wrote:

While they are making plays now, I'm anxious to see how they perform in big games. If you look at Brown's numbers last year in the post season, he only had 5 receptions. Each game his yards progressively went down. Sanders? Same thing.

Wallace was the exception. The Super Bowl was his best game (statistically)

They were also rookies. The coaching staff probably leaned on the vets like Ward, Miller and Wallace because of their inexperience. They wanted to put it in the hands of proven, consistent players in the big games. I think we'll see a dramatic increase in their involvement this postseason due to their consistency being proven and the extra year of experience under their belts.