(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
After the Pittsburgh Steelers escaped Kansas City on Sunday night with an 18-16 win in their Divisional Round matchup to set up an AFC Championship clash the Patriots, Antonio Brown posted a now-infamous video on Facebook Live.
In the video, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin stood in front of his team and gave a profanity-filled speech about how they’ll be ready for the AFC Championship game despite the fact that the New England Patriots will have more than a full extra day of rest. In the speech, he referred to the Patriots as “those a**holes” which sent the football world into a tizzy about the perceived slight at the Pats’ expense.
In the video, Tomlin can be heard referring to the Patriots as “those a**holes,” which in and of itself is no big deal. Given the context of the speech’s release, his words made headlines.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19UeejrJcvs
On Tuesday, Coach Tomlin spoke with the media at his weekly press conference, where he affirmed that he was not happy with Brown, calling his star player “selfish” and “foolish.”
Tomlin: Antonio Brown . . . "it was foolish of him to do that, selfish and inconsiderate. It was violation of our policy, league poilicy"
— Ed Bouchette (@EdBouchette) January 17, 2017
Tomlin: Will punish Antonio Brown, internally, and may be consequences from NFL in that regard.
— Ed Bouchette (@EdBouchette) January 17, 2017
Tomlin: He's a great player, respected largely in the locker room but incidents such as this don't help him in that regard
— Ed Bouchette (@EdBouchette) January 17, 2017
Tomlin: That's often why you see great players move from team to team. Don't want that to happen to Antonio Brown.
— Ed Bouchette (@EdBouchette) January 17, 2017
Similarly, veteran quarterback Ben Roethlisberger also expressed his frustration with his Pro Bowl wide receiver, telling 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh:
“It’s an unfortunate situation that we’ve got to deal with right now. That’s a sacred place where things are said and hugs and tears, and it’s kind of a special place. So a little disappointed with AB for that. Coach talks and then I talk, and you just don’t want everyone to know what’s going on in there with the family. And also, I wish AB would have been listening to Coach and myself instead of being on the other side of the locker room filming.”
The Steelers take on the Patriots this Sunday at 6:40 P.M. EST in Foxboro for the AFC Championship.
Mike Tomlin denounces Antonio Brown's decision to broadcast the Steelers locker room after the game. pic.twitter.com/dnLrKw8vWw
— Steel City Sports (@SteeICitySports) January 17, 2017
