Antonio Brown Wanted Steelers To Trade Him To Patriots; Negotiations Were Not Allowed

Patriots WR Antonio Brown will play in Week 2 against the Dolphins, Adam Schefter has confirmed.

Jason La Canfora reports New England was Brown’s preferred destination from the beginning.

Belichick’s pursuit of Brown dated back to his falling out with the Steelers at the end of the 2018 season. He was among the first executives to call about Brown’s availability when the Steelers made it clear the perennial Pro Bowler had no future there.

Bill Belichick was immediately willing to give the Steelers a first round pick for Brown but as discussions progressed, he was told the Pats were one team the Steelers front office was not allowed to negotiate with.

While Brown is set to make his Patriots debut today, as noted earlier here on NFLNews.co, allegations of rape and sexual assault have left his future with the team up in the air. It’s believed had Pats owner Robert Kraft known about the allegations, he would not have offered Brown the one-year deal worth up to $15 million with a $20 million option in 2020.

The Steelers ended up trading Brown to the Oakland Raiders this offseason but after a series of incidents, he was cut just before the season started.  The Patriots immediately scooped him up but now there are several questions regarding his future.