Brown fine with Roethlisberger's criticisms: 'Method to his madness'
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown insists there's no bad blood between him and his long-time quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
Roethlisberger made headlines for criticizing Brown and James Washington's route-running following Sunday's loss to the Denver Broncos.
The veteran quarterback doubled down Wednesday, telling reporters he's earned the right to criticize teammates.
Brown appears unfazed by Roethlisberger's commentary.
"Ben is my guy, man," Brown said Friday, according to Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I love him. There's a method to his madness. It's only going to inspire the group, encourage the group to do better. I know the type of guys he is. I know it can be misconstrued and changed in regards to how you guys put it out there. But he means well. He's here to inspire us all.
"He's the only one in this locker room that has a championship under his belt. If you do the little things, it's only going to encourage us to do something special."
The receiver noted Roethlisberger's accomplishments lend weight to his critiques and pointed out the distinction between personal attacks and professional discourse.
"Yeah we talk," Brown said. "It's not personal the way you guys make it. You guys make big stories, man. That's my guy. I love him. I got his back no matter what was said. Everything he said encouraged us to be better. He knows what it takes to win Super Bowls. None of us here have Super Bowl rings. That's what we're in the hunt to do. We're in the hunt to win a Super Bowl. He's a guy who has two (rings) and understands what it takes.
"If he's (challenging) guys and is calling guys out it's only for the group to be better. It's not to bring everyone down or pit us against each other. He's going to elevate us together, bring us together to help us win games."
The Steelers face the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
Copyright (C) 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.