Steelers' Antonio Brown after meeting with Art Rooney II: 'time to move on'

It looks like Antonio Brown is going to get his wish.

One week after formally requesting a trade, Brown tweeted he and team president Art Rooney II have agreed it is “time to move on” following their meeting Tuesday morning to discuss the wide receiver’s future.

Rooney and Brown met at Palm Beach International Airport in Florida, according to Brown’s Instagram post. Brown’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, attended the meeting as did Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert and assistant Omar Khan.

Brown posted a picture to his social media accounts showing him with his arm around Rooney’s shoulder.

Rosenhaus said in an interview with ESPN that the Steelers will handle all trade talks and didn’t give him permission to broker a deal for Brown.

“The Steelers are running the whole trade effort,” he said. “Antonio is under contract, and they have the ability to talk to other teams now and find the best deal for them. We hope they get a great amount of compensation. We want everyone to win here.”

Had a great meeting with Mr.Rooney today we discussed a lot of things and we cleared the air on several issues! We both agreed that it is time to move on but I’ll always have appreciation and gratitude towards the Rooney family and @steelers organization! #CallGod #Boomin pic.twitter.com/DEgURchvhW

— Antonio Brown (@AB84) February 19, 2019

Rooney arranged the meeting so he could get the wide receiver’s version of events that led to Brown skipping practices and meetings at the end of the season. Until Tuesday, Brown had refused to return phone calls from Rooney and others in the organization, including coach Mike Tomlin.

Brown wrote that it was a “great meeting” and that he and Rooney “discussed a lot of things and we cleared the air on several issues.” Brown said the decision for him to “move on” was mutual.

Brown added that he will “always have the appreciation and gratitude towards the Rooney family and Steelers organization.”

The Steelers are expected to trade Brown in a five-day window that begins March 13 when the new NFL season opens. If Brown is not traded by March 17, the Steelers must pay him a $2.5 million roster bonus. The Steelers will be on the hook for $21.12 million in “dead money” on the salary cap if Brown is traded before June 1. If Brown is traded after that date, his salary-cap hit can be spread over two seasons.

The Steelers are thought to be seeking a high draft pick for Brown.

Brown has three years and approximately $40 million left on his contract, but on a live Instagram post Monday night he said he wants to receive guaranteed money from his new team. Brown has no guarantees left on his deal and would have to renegotiate his contract with his new team in order to get guaranteed money.

“AB can’t do no more un-guaranteed,” Brown said.

Brown recorded the video while working out on an elliptical machine and said he wanted to be referred to as “Mr. Big Chest” in the future.

“If there is a squad out there that wants to win and wants a hungry wide receiver who is the best in the whole world,” Brown said mid-workout, “someone hit my phone up.”