Antonio Brown focused on becoming greatest WR of all time

[polamalubeast]

LATROBE, Pa. -- The NFL's best wide receiver in 2014 is unabashed in his desire to be the best wide receiver in any year.

Those around Antonio Brown see that plan in motion every day in Pittsburgh Steelers training camp. He torched every cornerback who lined up against him in one-on-ones Wednesday and caught four passes, one for a touchdown, in the team's two-minute drill period.

"He's trying to be the G.O.A.T.," offensive coordinator Todd Haley said. "And he won't settle for anything less.


Brown confirmed that. And after 33 straight games of at least five catches and at least 50 yards -- an NFL record by 14 games -- the standard is set.

"That's exactly my mindset," Brown told ESPN.com when asked about becoming the greatest of all time. "I want to be special. Things are different now. I'm not that sixth-round pick anymore."

In 2010, the Steelers drafted Brown out of Central Michigan with the 195th overall pick.

Brown admits he has a ways to go in chasing standard-bearers such as Jerry Rice. But he might thrust himself into the conversation eventually if he sustains his current pace. Brown's 239 catches for 3,197 yards and 21 touchdowns since 2013 represent the league's strongest body of work during that span. No other receiver got within 18 receptions of Brown's 129-catch total in 2014. And Brown, who is 5-foot-10, has added 5 pounds of muscle this offseason.

Continuing his 5-and-50 streak for one more full season would put him at 49 straight games, approaching Joe DiMaggio-like numbers. Brown said he tries not to think about that streak but said having a "Hall of Fame quarterback" such as Ben Roethlisberger and a strong supporting cast helps extend it.


read more


http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/13384293/antonio-brown-pittsburgh-steelers-aims-greatest-all

[TeeTee]

Sigh. I am all good with setting the bar high, but I am not good with speaking it aloud to the media. Also, if he is so hyper focused on personal goals, will that not sometimes interfere with the team goals? (i.e. has to get 5 catches a game, perhaps at a time when another target is more open for a TD and win). I think this is one of Tomlin's weaknesses. He seems not great at managing success. Way to many guys talking "best ever" stuff. I prefer that they just keep saying, "We will give it our best effort and then we will see what happens." Way too much "best ever" smack.

[polamalubeast]

Sigh. I am all good with setting the bar high, but I am not good with speaking it aloud to the media. Also, if he is so hyper focused on personal goals, will that not sometimes interfere with the team goals? (i.e. has to get 5 catches a game, perhaps at a time when another target is more open for a TD and win). I think this is one of Tomlin's weaknesses. He seems not great at managing success. Way to many guys talking "best ever" stuff. I prefer that they just keep saying, "We will give it our best effort and then we will see what happens." Way too much "best ever" smack.

It helps the team if Antonio Brown became one of the best WR of all time!

Also, Brown and other players did not need to say every time the teams goal since everyone knows what is the goal of the 32 teams.

[st33lersguy]

I think he is a special player and am excited to see what he can do

[86WARD]

Sigh. I am all good with setting the bar high, but I am not good with speaking it aloud to the media. Also, if he is so hyper focused on personal goals, will that not sometimes interfere with the team goals? (i.e. has to get 5 catches a game, perhaps at a time when another target is more open for a TD and win). I think this is one of Tomlin's weaknesses. He seems not great at managing success. Way to many guys talking "best ever" stuff. I prefer that they just keep saying, "We will give it our best effort and then we will see what happens." Way too much "best ever" smack.

You take these comments out of context. It's not like he's a supporting actor in Rocky 28 and talking smack and trying to be a bad ass about it. He's got a goal. He wants to be the best WR of all-time, what do you want him to say? "I want to be the 201st best WR of All-Time"? Lol. It's a good "attitude" to have. BTW, Brown didn't say it in the article. Haley did and Brown was asked about it...

[teegre]

He might be #2.

No one will ever surpass Jerry Rice.

[fansince'76]

You take these comments out of context. It's not like he's a supporting actor in Rocky 28 and talking smack and trying to be a bad ass about it. He's got a goal. He wants to be the best WR of all-time, what do you want him to say? "I want to be the 201st best WR of All-Time"? Lol. It's a good "attitude" to have. BTW, Brown didn't say it in the article. Haley did and Brown was asked about it...

This. Jesus. Every player in the league should strive to be a Belichick-ian robot with monosyllabic white bread responses to every media inquiry. Yeah, we get it already.

If threads like this cause such consternation for some folks, maybe it would be best for those folks to exercise a little self-restraint and not open them at all. Just a thought.

[Count Steeler]

He might be #2.

No one will ever surpass Jerry Rice.

But that's cause he had Joe Montana throwing him the ball. :wink02:

[st33lersguy]

The future looks bright with AB and Bell, among others

[Mojouw]

But that's cause he had Joe Montana throwing him the ball. :wink02:

But was he paid to jump?

[Count Steeler]

But was he paid to jump?

Interesting question. Is there proof of Mr. Rice leaving his feet to make a catch? Let's assume there is. Now the debate is, did he do it because he was paid or did he do it because he wanted to make the catch and his agent was just too stupid to get extra money for jumping.

[TeeTee]

This. Jesus. Every player in the league should strive to be a Belichick-ian robot with monosyllabic white bread responses to every media inquiry. Yeah, we get it already.

If threads like this cause such consternation for some folks, maybe it would be best for those folks to exercise a little self-restraint and not open them at all. Just a thought.


That's a retarded assertion...on so many levels. So all of us should only open threads that we think we will agree with? Is that your contention? Patently insane. What do you think message boards are for? To only agree on every point?

[TeeTee]

He might be #2.

No one will ever surpass Jerry Rice.

Brown has 5,259 yards. Rice had 22,859. All AB needs is a little more than 17,000 more yards, and he already has played 5 seasons. Assuming he plays a little over 5 seasons more, all he needs is a little over 5,000 yards each season. In Ben's best season in his career, he almost threw for 5,000 yards total last year. So, all AB needs is for Ben to throw every single pass to him for the rest of his career.

AB has 28 career TDs. Rice had 197 TDs. So AB will need to average over 33 TDs a season for the rest of his career.

[fansince'76]

That's a retarded assertion...on so many levels. So all of us should only open threads that we think we will agree with? Is that your contention? Patently insane. What do you think message boards are for? To only agree on every point?

:rolleyes:

If you want to continue to be a broken record and lodge the exact same complaint in multiple threads whenever a player makes a fairly innocuous comment that you deem to be "smack talk," then go for it. :coffee:

[fansince'76]

Who's to say Brown won't play 20+ seasons like Rice did, especially with the game of pattycake defenses are forced to play nowadays? Not to mention the fact that Brown's game isn't predicated on speed, but on great route running, like Rice's was (unlike a certain one-trick pony).

[TeeTee]

I think he is a special player and am excited to see what he can do

Agreed. But that isn't the point. Running your mouth about being the G.O.A.T. when you need about 5,000 yards a season to do so makes one sound out of touch. Focus on winning, not on self.

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Who's to say Brown won't play 20+ seasons like Rice did, especially with the game of pattycake defenses are forced to play nowadays? Not to mention the fact that Brown's game isn't predicated on speed, but on great route running, like Rice's was (unlike a certain one-trick pony).

No one in the history of mankind could play as long as Rice did. AB's game in based on quickness. He won't be as quick at 35 as he is now. That is a fact.

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:rolleyes:

If you want to continue to be a broken record and lodge the exact same complaint in multiple threads whenever a player makes a fairly innocuous comment that you deem to be "smack talk," then go for it. :coffee:

They keep making like comments, I can keep expressing my opinion of the selfish, pride-comes-before-the-fall observations. I have never seen positive things happen after players start crowing about how great they are and about how great they are going to be. Tomlin obviously doesn't know enough to reign them in on self-damaging quotes.

[Count Steeler]

Brown has 5,259 yards. Rice had 22,859. All AB needs is a little more than 17,000 more yards, and he already has played 5 seasons. Assuming he plays a little over 5 seasons more, all he needs is a little over 5,000 yards each season. In Ben's best season in his career, he almost threw for 5,000 yards total last year. So, all AB needs is for Ben to throw every single pass to him for the rest of his career.

AB has 28 career TDs. Rice had 197 TDs. So AB will need to average over 33 TDs a season for the rest of his career.

Sure take a player with 20 plus seasons and compare them to a player that you are limiting to 10 seasons. Patently insane, you say?

[fansince'76]

Charlie joiner played 18 seasons, Tim Brown played 17. Andre Reed played 16. And the game was a LOT rougher when they played, especially in Joiner's era. That's a fact.

But yeah, no way Brown's gonna make it past 10. :coffee:

[Craic]

Brown has 5,259 yards. Rice had 22,859. All AB needs is a little more than 17,000 more yards, and he already has played 5 seasons. Assuming he plays a little over 5 seasons more, all he needs is a little over 5,000 yards each season. In Ben's best season in his career, he almost threw for 5,000 yards total last year. So, all AB needs is for Ben to throw every single pass to him for the rest of his career.

AB has 28 career TDs. Rice had 197 TDs. So AB will need to average over 33 TDs a season for the rest of his career.

Wrong assessment tool. First, Jerry Rice played 20 years. If you want to compare apples to apples, either project Antonio Brown's career 20 years, or compare the average per year stats.

When you do that . . .




Career Receptions ave. per year

Career Ave. Yards per Year

Career Av. Receptions per game

Career Ave. Yards per game

Career TDs per year

Career TDs per game



Jerry Rice

77.45

1144.75

5.13

75.6

9.85

0.65



Antonio Brown

78

1051

5.57

75.1

5.6

0.4




AB, so far in his career, has a better average reception per game and per year than Rice. He's just under rice in average yards per year and per game. In TDs per game, he falls short.

Now, before someone jumps up and down and says, "But it's a pass-happy league!" sure, it is now. However, don't forget that Jerry Rice was also the product of the West-Coast dip and dunk offense. Send Rice on a three yard slant, hit him with the ball, and let him run. In the days when running the ball was still something defense worried about (and SF had Roger Craig, who had three plus seasons with over 1000 yards rushing, plus ungodly reception numbers, many of which were basically long handoffs), that offense style could roll over anyone. So the difference between Rice's numbers and Brown's numbers when it comes to it being a "passing league" now isn't much different, all things considered (such as west coast offense).

[Count Steeler]

Charlie joiner played 18 seasons, Tim Brown played 17. Andre Reed played 16. And the game was a LOT rougher when they played, especially in Joiner's era. That's a fact.

But yeah, no way Brown's gonna make it past 10. :coffee:

And Jerry Rice never changed his game. He played the same way in his first game as he did in his last. Speed is replaced with experience and savvy.

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AND, TO belabor the point, Jerry Rice had Joe Montana throwing to him.

[TeeTee]

Charlie joiner played 18 seasons, Tim Brown played 17. Andre Reed played 16. And the game was a LOT rougher when they played, especially in Joiner's era. That's a fact.

But yeah, no way Brown's gonna make it past 10. :coffee:

Let's make a wager then. I say Rice will have more yards and TDs than will AB at the end of his career. How much you want to wager?

[86WARD]

So you'd rather have a guy say he doesn't want to be the greatest when asked by the media? What should he say?

[TeeTee]

And Jerry Rice never changed his game. He played the same way in his first game as he did in his last. Speed is replaced with experience and savvy.

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AND, TO belabor the point, Jerry Rice had Joe Montana throwing to him.

Well, he didn't quite play the same his whole career, because if he did, Shanahan wouldn't have cut him in Denver. His final 3 seasons he had 429, 362 and and 67 yards. My guess is his game did change just a tad compared to his other seasons.

In 1995 he dropped 1,848 yards on fools. And that was back when DBs could actually defend.

[86WARD]

AND, TO belabor the point, Jerry Rice had Joe Montana throwing to him.

Don't forget Steve Young and even Rich Gannon...who wasn't by any means terrible. 13 Pro Bowl QBs over 20 seasons and 5 MVP awards within that group.

[86WARD]

Well, he didn't quite play the same his whole career, because if he did, Shanahan wouldn't have cut him in Denver. His final 3 seasons he had 429, 362 and and 67 yards. My guess is his game did change just a tad compared to his other seasons.

In 1995 he dropped 1,848 yards on fools. And that was back when DBs could actually defend.

And in 1995, he wasn't the best WR in the NFL.

[TeeTee]

So you'd rather have a guy say he doesn't want to be the greatest when asked by the media? What should he say?

I have a great answer to that. Say, "I am going to put everything I have into being the best I can be for as long as I can."

THAT is how you answer it.

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And in 1995, he wasn't the best WR in the NFL.

Really? He had more yards than anyone and only 2 TDs less than Carter, the TD leader that year.

[Butch]

If it was him spouting off to the media to get attention that is one thing, but this was a question that was put to him and he answered it. May not have been the answer you wanted but I don't see any harm in what he said.

I used to hate it when Joey would spout off to opposing players before games, but he backed it up more often than not, so if AB turns out to back up his desire I am all for it as long as he is a Steeler when he does it.

[hawaiiansteeler]

Shoot for the moon....even if you miss, you'll land among the stars!

It's better to aim high and miss, rather than to aim low and hit...

[86WARD]

I have a great answer to that. Say, "I am going to put everything I have into being the best I can be for as long as I can."

THAT is how you answer it.

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Really? He had more yards than anyone and only 2 TDs less than Carter, the TD leader that year.

I'm sure Landry Jones says the same thing...lol. Im sure every NFL player tries to be the "best they can be." Only the great ones strive to be better.

1995 Season:


Herman Moore caught 123 (a new single-season record) passes for 1686 yards and 14 touchdowns, despite having Scott Mitchell as his quarterback (career Pro Bowl selections: zero).


Isaac Bruce caught 119 passes for 1781 yards and 13 touchdowns. His quarterback(s)? Chris Miller and Mark Rypien. The next leading receiver on the St. Louis Rams (http://bleacherreport.com/st-louis-rams) was the ever-dangerous Troy Drayton, a 260-pound tight end who hauled in 47 passes for 458 yards and four touchdowns during the season.


Cris Carter caught 122 passes for 1371 yards and a league-leading 17 touchdowns, while helping to coax one final great season out of the 39-year-old Warren Moon.

Michael Irvin caught 111 balls for 1603 yards and 10 touchdowns. Nine different players caught 100 passes that season.

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If it was him spouting off to the media to get attention that is one thing, but this was a question that was put to him and he answered it. May not have been the answer you wanted but I don't see any harm in what he said.



Exactly.

[Psycho Ward 86]

Let's make a wager then. I say Rice will have more yards and TDs than will AB at the end of his career. How much you want to wager?

ah yes because of course we'll all probably still be around active on this forum like 15 years from now smh...

[86WARD]

"He's trying to be the G.O.A.T.," offensive coordinator Todd Haley said. "And he won't settle for anything less."


"That's exactly my mindset," Brown told ESPN.com when asked about becoming the greatest of all time. "I want to be special. Things are different now. I'm not that sixth-round pick anymore."

Where did Brown run his mouth saying he will be the Greatest of All Time?

[Count Steeler]

And, wait for it, if Antonio drops a deuce on the fools this year, it will because of the supporting cast or because of Ben or because of the weakened defenses or blah, blah, blah.

Antonio Brown, since 2013 is the best WR in the game. Period.

Comparing stats from one era to another is meaningless. Let's see how long Brown can stay at the top or near the top during his career. Then we can have a decent discussion about who was best. Rice had the benefit of some very good QBs. Let's see what the Steelers have after Big Ben. That will determine the outcome of Brown's legacy.

[Mojouw]

This is about the most ridiculous thread ever. Bottom line is two things that, for me are not open for debate:

1. Jerry Rice is the greatest football player to ever lace them up. Not just WR, but player. He leads every major receiving category by a country mile. No one will ever catch Rice.

2. AB's comments are about the most innocent "smack talk" you will ever hear. T, to you even remember Michael Irvin, Ochocinco, Keyshawn, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, etc? Those dudes were basically slamming people and touting their egos daily in the media. AB simply said, he has a higher standard to uphold now than "6th round pick fighting for a roster spot" and that he wants to put in the work required to be the best WR of all time. Flipping out on that is just silly.

I will close with a prayer to the Football Gods that they soon bestow upon us real actual meaningful football so we can all put away our psychology textbooks and stop parsing non-sense comments for deep meanings. Besides, any true Steelers fan knows that reading waaaaaaaaayyyyyy to far into statements is a sport best reserved for proving that Mike Tomlin is a terrible coach who has lost control of the locker room and basically does nothing to improve, change, or direct the franchise. Because ping pong. Amen.

[st33lersguy]

Agreed. But that isn't the point. Running your mouth about being the G.O.A.T. when you need about 5,000 yards a season to do so makes one sound out of touch. Focus on winning, not on self.


Are you kidding me with this? Brown is setting his goals very high, and is showing that he is working hard to try and make it happen. And news flash, Brown working to hard to try and be the greatest ever HELPS THE TEAM WIN!

[tube517]

AB is a one trick ball on the helmet catching pony. What a diva. If he has a 4 catch 49 yard day this season he'll be a bust. He should shaddup. Fire Richard Mann.

Sent from my K011 using Tapatalk

[slippy]

for comparison, here's the way NOT to do it ...http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/08/09/adrian-peterson-im-already-a-hall-of-famer-i-want-to-be-the-best-ever/

[86WARD]

for comparison, here's the way NOT to do it ...http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/08/09/adrian-peterson-im-already-a-hall-of-famer-i-want-to-be-the-best-ever/

If Terrell Davis is in the discussion for the Hall of Fame (which I don't think he should be), than Adrian Peterson is a lock...I think he could've rephrased it and come off better, but I don't really have a major problem with what Peterson said here.

This is the way NOT to do it:

http://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/pg-photo/2012/06/08/09000d5d829ac59d/jacket_pg_600.jpg

[st33lersguy]

This is the way NOT to do it:

http://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/pg-photo/2012/06/08/09000d5d829ac59d/jacket_pg_600.jpg

That assclown will never be in the Hall

[TeeTee]

It's just the AB quote. I don't like when you hear too many comments of a team and how great they are. Tomlin fails at managing success. His team is following his lead, which is to start thinking you are so good that all you have to do is show up, and then lose to the worst teams in the league, over and over again.

[86WARD]

But that's the thing...he never said he IS the greatest of all time. He didn't even mention it but if you want to read into it, he's striving to be the greatest...which is nothing but a good thing...lol.

[Mojouw]

It's just the AB quote. I don't like when you hear too many comments of a team and how great they are. Tomlin fails at managing success. His team is following his lead, which is to start thinking you are so good that all you have to do is show up, and then lose to the worst teams in the league, over and over again.

Do you read the quotes from other teams and other players across the NFL? If anything the Steelers are at worst average with their comments, and typically are one of the more understated teams in the league.

As for the Tomlin psycho-babble nonsense debate, this board has had it time and time again. I will ask you the same questions I have asked others around here:

What, specifically, would you have Tomlin do different from a roster/player management standpoint, a tactical/scheme approach, and/or an overall strategic decision making standpoint? "Fails at managing success" is some middle manager type throw-away corporate jargon comment that means nothing.

As to what the players are saying to the media, what are the supposed to say - "If we work really hard, you know bring that lunchpail mentality (leaving aside that none of these kids know what the hell a lunchpail is), and play together as a team, I think we can be mediocre. I mean, I don't want to fail at managing any future success we may have as a team, I don't want to get us thinking we are too good, so I think if we play fundamentally sound, stick to our assignments, play physical, Steelers brand of football....we can be 7-9."

[teegre]

But that's cause he had Joe Montana throwing him the ball. :wink02:

This thread...


But was he paid to jump?

...just keeps getting better...


Interesting question. Is there proof of Mr. Rice leaving his feet to make a catch? Let's assume there is. Now the debate is, did he do it because he was paid or did he do it because he wanted to make the catch and his agent was just too stupid to get extra money for jumping.

...and better...

[teegre]

This is about the most ridiculous thread ever. Bottom line is two things that, for me are not open for debate:

1. Jerry Rice is the greatest football player to ever lace them up. Not just WR, but player. He leads every major receiving category by a country mile. No one will ever catch Rice.

2. AB's comments are about the most innocent "smack talk" you will ever hear. T, to you even remember Michael Irvin, Ochocinco, Keyshawn, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, etc? Those dudes were basically slamming people and touting their egos daily in the media. AB simply said, he has a higher standard to uphold now than "6th round pick fighting for a roster spot" and that he wants to put in the work required to be the best WR of all time. Flipping out on that is just silly.

I will close with a prayer to the Football Gods that they soon bestow upon us real actual meaningful football so we can all put away our psychology textbooks and stop parsing non-sense comments for deep meanings. Besides, any true Steelers fan knows that reading waaaaaaaaayyyyyy to far into statements is a sport best reserved for proving that Mike Tomlin is a terrible coach who has lost control of the locker room and basically does nothing to improve, change, or direct the franchise. Because ping pong. Amen.

The perfect summation. Well done.

[TeeTee]

That assclown will never be in the Hall

Actually, on all the sports shows today, not only are they saying he will make it in, they are saying he deserve to get in on his first year of eligibility. :noidea:

[polamalubeast]

Actually, on all the sports shows today, not only are they saying he will make it in, they are saying he deserve to get in on his first year of eligibility. :noidea:

Sorry,but Chad Johnson is not close to be a hall of fame....

[st33lersguy]

Actually, on all the sports shows today, not only are they saying he will make it in, they are saying he deserve to get in on his first year of eligibility. :noidea:

Give me a break, he is not a hall of fame caliber player. He was more talk than anything

[86WARD]

I don't know...I don't see Chad Johnson being Hall of Fame caliber...maybe I'm missing something.

[TeeTee]

Sorry,but Chad Johnson is not close to be a hall of fame....

My bad, I thought it was TO. They are both such ass hats that it's easy to get them confused.

[TeeTee]

I don't know...I don't see Chad Johnson being Hall of Fame caliber...maybe I'm missing something.

If his last few seasons weren't such a joke, he's have a shot.

But he has virtually no play off production, not to mention, never won anything.

I don't think he will make it.