Antonio Brown is entering the realm of T.O and Randy Moss

Antonio Brown has felt like a player that was slowly fading out of view not as a producer on the field but as a true leader presence.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have tried to handle their superstar wide receiver with care the past couple of years as his frustration has apparently continued to mount. It seemed like they’d been able to keep things in check but losing tends to bring out the worst in people. Such was the case in the season finale. Facing must-win situation, the Steelers had hoped Brown would be available despite dealing with nagging knee injury issues.

Not only did Brown not play in the game, he apparently left before it concluded. Pittsburgh won regardless, topping the Bengals 16-13. In the end, it didn’t matter as Baltimore held off the Cleveland Browns to clinch the AFC North title. Yet for many in the locker room, the anger over Brown’s behavior was just for how he acted on Sunday. It turns out the problems began long before that.

"“Pittsburgh Steelers players were surprised Antonio Brown didn’t play in Sunday’s season finale, and Brown’s absence was not addressed by head coach Mike Tomlin during his meeting with the team Monday, multiple sources told NFL Network’s Aditi Kinkhabwala.Brown was not present at the team meeting, sources told Kinkhabwala, and there was frustration in the locker room that the tumultuous week was not addressed by the head coach. Brown was absent from the team’s walkthrough Saturday, and a member of the organization told Kinkhabwala that Brown left Heinz Field at halftime Sunday.”"

Antonio Brown likely is gone in 2019 and it’s his own fault

There is a strong likelihood that Brown will go into the Hall of Fame someday. However, it feels like his legacy is starting to drift towards that of many previous diva receivers like Terrell Owens and Randy Moss. They mostly cared about their own stats and production than they did sacrifice to help the team win. Eventually, they too were cast off from their original teams despite ridiculous amounts of success.

One common theme about such players. They tend to never win a championship. They’re forever followed by that moniker of never having gotten a ring. Maybe that’s a way of karma working itself out. Brown will get his yards, his touchdowns, and his money but when it comes to comparing him with the likes of Jerry Rice or Larry Fitzgerald? People won’t be all that accommodating and it’s because of things like this.