The Pittsburgh Steelers' 2026 offseason has been one of the busiest in quite some time for the storied franchise. After hiring new head coach Mike McCarthy, general manager Omar Khan started making a flurry of free agent moves to try and improve the team. Following the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, things have calmed down compared to how they started in the offseason. However, former franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was recently mentioned in a social media rant by one of his former teammates. The rant that ensued on TikTok is nothing out of the ordinary as he bashed Roethlisberger.
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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger passes against the Denver Broncos in a game in the 2020 NFL season.
Former wide receiver Antonio Brown went one on a rant on TikTok Live, accusing Roethlisberger of holding back his career production. This is not uncommon for the troubled Brown, as he is awaiting trial on an attempted second-degree murder charge for a shooting incident outside a boxing event in Miami in 2025. During the outburst, he also name dropped former NFL wide receiver Brandon Marshall, saying that he would slap him.
“Yo, ask Ben Roethlisberger how many touchdowns he hold me back from, ask him,” Brown yelled. “You think I need a Hall of Fame award for you guys to know how great I am?”
The duo had a great career in the Steel City, as they combined for 78 total touchdowns during their playing time together. However, that apparently was not enough for the former standout wide receiver, even though it was good for sixth-best in NFL history. The feud between the two started following a 2018 playoff loss in which Roethlisberger seemingly blamed Brown for not being a good route runner.
The organization traded Brown to the then-Oakland Raiders for two picks in the 2019 NFL Draft. He eventually found himself with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where they won Super Bowl LV together by a score of 31-9 over the Kansas City Chiefs. Brown had five receptions for 22 yards and a touchdown in the big game.
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Steelers' Antonio Brown looks on during a home game in Pittsburgh.
Brown is not the only wide receiver in Pittsburgh that turned into a diva and created drama off the field, causing unnecessary distractions. The team has done a better job of late in keeping star players humble and not seeing this pattern repeat. This latest outburst from Brown does not come as a shock, as he has had some troubling moments in the past on social media. However, the timing of this social media tirade from him is definitely bizarre.
Steelers Must Continue To Keep Superstars Humble
The franchise is looking to improve off of a disappointing offensive output in the 2025 season. Khan added wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. via a trade with the Indianapolis Colts to help out DK Metcalf. For an offense that was 25th in the league in total offense last season, with 305.6 yards per game, they definitely needed to make improvements by adding weapons to McCarthy's new offense. They did just that and then some by complementing the pairing in the draft in April.
They made yet another trade with Indianapolis, trading up in the draft to draft University of Alabama wide receiver Germie Bernard with the 47th overall pick in the second round. He did a great job of being able to showcase his play-making abilities all over the field while at Alabama, even being utilized at running back. He should be a great addition to Pittman and Metcalf to give the Steelers three solid options to get the ball to while on offense in 2026.
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Steelers new wide receiver Germie Bernard scores a touchdown as he basically walks into the end zone during the SEC Championship Game with Alabama against Georgia in 2025.
Bernard received high praise from former NFL wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. following the organization's selection of him. He appears to be an exact opposite of Brown when it comes to personality.
If he is, that would be great news because for a team trying to snap a nearly decade-long playoff drought, the less drama there is, the better their chances are to succeed on field. It is unclear what triggered this recent rant, but hopefully the team can keep doing a great job of not allowing players to get out of control like Brown did.
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