Pittsburgh next week. The Steelers travel to Tampa Bay to take on the surprising Buccaneers, who are off to a 2-0 start behind resurgent Ryan Fitzpatrick. All the 35-year-old Fitzpatrick has done is go over 400 yards in each of the first two week while filling in for suspended starter Jameis Winston.S

Some of Antonio Brown’s antics are impossible to defend.Livestreaming from the locker room after a playoff win. Disappearing for two days right before the crucial season finale of 2018. Showing no respect for the coach who spent so much time defending his eccentricities.But demanding a new contract?That’s just a smart business move.In a league that still balks at fully guaranteeing a player’s financial security Chris Lindstrom Jersey , Brown rightfully seized on his ugly breakup from the Pittsburgh Steelers to land a lucrative new deal from the Oakland Raiders.For a star player, these are the best moments to secure their financial future.If not, they could wind up like Justin Houston.The four-time Pro Bowler was due to make $15.25 million this season. Kansas City decided that was too much. When no one was willing to trade for Houston and his big contract, the Chiefs handed him a pink slip.No one derided Kansas City for a lack of loyalty to one of the best pass rushers in club history, a guy who’s averaged nearly 10 sacks a season over his eight-year career.Houston recently turned 30 years old, his production tailed off the past few seasons, and the Chiefs needed to free up cap money that can be used to make other much-needed upgrades to their defense.Sorry, Justin. It’s just business.But Brown’s trade to Oakland, which will be completed when the free-agency period officially begins Wednesday, was roundly excoriated by those who had cheered him for the last nine seasons in Pittsburgh.At least one Steelers fan had already burned his No. 84 jersey in the fireplace when it became clear a month ago that Brown didn’t want to play for the team anymore. (Wouldn’t it have made more sense to donate the black-and-gold garment to charity?)Plenty of others grumbled at Brown’s tactics, saying he didn’t deserve to land a three-year, $50.125 million contract from the Raiders — a raise of more than $11 million over what he was set to make with the Steelers — after bailing on the city where an obscure, sixth-round pick transformed into one of the game’s most dominating receivers.Local radio personality Mark Madden tweeted: “If anyone thinks it was OK for AB to skip out on Wk 17 & ditch his teammates when the Steelers were still in the playoff race to grease his exit & sharpen his pursuit of more $, that’s sad. But we’re in an era where many athletes care a lot about money & not at all about winning.”Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette added, “Do not blame Steelers for getting ONLY a third- and fifth-round pick for Antonio Brown. Blame Antonio Brown. He created a skeptical and reluctant trade market with his insubordination http://www.falconsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-kaleb-mcgary-jersey , narcissistic behavior and money threats.”Again, it’s hard to argue with those who say Brown didn’t handle this messy situation the right way, but none of us knows exactly what went on behind the scenes. There were clearly issues between Brown and Ben Roethlisberger, perhaps going all the way back to the quarterback’s handling of a botched national anthem demonstration in 2017.But, whatever we think of AB, there are bigger issues at play here.Owners across the league are surely sweating a bit after watching Brown score a clear-cut victory over one of their brethren in a system that has always been tilted greatly against the players.Brown got just what he wanted: a new contract and a new team. The Steelers, on the other hand, were forced to accept pennies on the dollar for one the league’s best players. Making matters worse, they’ll take a massive cap hit for someone who is catching passes for another team next season.Randy Moss believes other stars can take a page from Brown’s disgruntled playbook to get what they want.But the Hall of Famer also noted that most players are still largely at the mercy of the owners.“If you are an elite player in the NFL, then I think yes, this is the approach you can take out of Antonio Brown’s book,” Moss told ESPN. “If you’re a guy just waiting to get a little contract, just to remain on the team, don’t take Antonio Brown’s approach because you’ll find yourself at home. This approach is not for everyone.”No one really knows what it all means for the upcoming labor talks, which figure to be highly contentious.In a perfect world Kendall Sheffield Jersey , this would help to drive the two sides together to reach an agreement on guaranteed contracts.For the owners, it would remove the incentive and justification for stars to cause an AB-sized ruckus. For the players, there should be a willingness to take a bit of hit on the top end of the salary scale as long as the entire membership benefits from greater financial security.Wouldn’t that be something?Brown’s ugly departure from the Steel City helps broker a labor deal that makes everyone happy. PITTSBURGH (AP) — Forget the communication issues in the secondary. The lack of a consistent pass rush. The inability to get off the field. Forget the eye-popping statistics the Pittsburgh Steelers gave up in a 42-37 loss to Kansas City on Sunday that left the two-time defending AFC North champions at an early season crossroads.All the mistakes and missed opportunities — and there were plenty to go around — came down to one very obvious problem.“We didn’t kick enough (tail),” defensive end Cam Heyward said. “It’s as simple as that. I’m not going to sit up here and sugarcoat it. As a leader I have to be better.”Heyward is hardly the only one.A week after racking up seven sacks and helping the Steelers salvage a tie in Cleveland they perhaps didn’t deserve, Pittsburgh’s revamped defense wilted under the mid-September sun and the steady onslaught of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.The Steelers have been in the NFL for 86 seasons and played nearly 1,200 regular-season games. Mahomes became only the second player ever to throw for six touchdowns against Pittsburgh. Hall of Famer Jim Kelly did it for Buffalo in 1991.Mahomes did it in his third career start.Ouch.“We just didn’t cover well enough,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “We didn’t rush well enough. It is always collective when they are making plays in the passing game. We didn’t get after them.”Not by a long shot.Mahomes had more touchdown passes than incompletions, finishing 23 of 28 for 326 yards. The Steelers (0-1-1) only forced Kansas City to punt twice, failed to prevent a touchdown in four red-zone trips by the Chiefs and seemed completely overmatched at times.Pittsburgh played without veteran cornerback Joe Haden, nursing a hamstring injury. The Steelers started Cam Sutton in Haden’s place, but the experiment lasted barely a quarter. By then Mahomes had already thrown for three scores as Kansas City built a quick 21-point lead.On the surface, it looked much like Pittsburgh’s 45-42 loss to Jacksonville in the divisional round of the playoffs.“We felt like we gave them the 21 points,” cornerback Mike Hilton said. “They didn’t really go down and earn it on us. We had a lot of miscommunications and blown coverages that led to the 21 from the start.”The Steelers rallied behind quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, drawing to a 21-all tie by halftime. Their momentum stalled in the second half. The Chiefs (2-0), meanwhile http://www.falconsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-john-cominsky-jersey , just kept on coming.Kansas City found the end zone on its first three possessions in each half. Rather than exploit one matchup, the Chiefs spread the ball around. Seven different Kansas City players caught passes. Five different Chiefs scored.“Those guys were getting open today,” Mahomes said. “The offensive line was blocking great, so it was making my job a lot easier.”Not that the Chiefs met with much resistance. The Steelers only forced Kansas City into five third downs all afternoon.“Every category for the defense we was below average, and you can’t beat a good team like that,” safety Sean Davis said. “We missed tackles. We gave up plays. Too many penalties.”Things won’t get any easier for Pittsburgh next week. The Steelers travel to Tampa Bay to take on the surprising Buccaneers, who are off to a 2-0 start behind resurgent Ryan Fitzpatrick. All the 35-year-old Fitzpatrick has done is go over 400 yards in each of the first two week while filling in for suspended starter Jameis Winston.Still, the Steelers (0-1-1) preached patience, not panic.“The locker room I don’t think is going to break apart,” defensive end Stephon Tuitt said. “A lot of guys are close. We just have to keep continuing to push each other. We’re going to get better. We’re going to get over this hump but we just have to continue to build and push.”Might want to hurry.“You look at the glass half full and say we’re 0-1-1, not 0-2,” Heyward said. “I’m not going to over judge. I just say we have got to get the job done.”