Pittsburgh Steelers: Antonio Brown is great by design

PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 10: Antonio Brown
PITTSBURGH, PA - DECEMBER 10: Antonio Brown

How Antonio Brown went from a sixth-round pick for the Pittsburgh Steelers to the NFL’s best receiver didn’t happen by accident.

Running through a list of NFL Draft steals, Antonio Brown ranks first. Over the last two decades, no player outside of Tom Brady is considered more of a diamond in the rough than Brown. But how he got here didn’t happen by accident.

What Brown excel’s at more than almost any other player at his position is his ability to create open space. Through speed, a quick first step and some flashy body movement, Brown can separate himself from any opposing corner.

He didn’t create this technique overnight, though. Like every player in the league, Brown works with experts to master his craft. His trainer, David Robinson, doesn’t take the normal approach to training, however. Providing Brown with a unique outlook on how to approach routes that differs from most in the NFL.

Robinson looks at Brown’s passion like LeBron James looks at basketball; no matter how good you are, you can never be perfect at your craft. So, when he’s working with Brown, he focuses on repetition.

Robinson recently appeared on Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson’s podcast, Scoop B Radio Podcast to discuss working with his long list of NFL wideouts:

"“You would be surprised,” Robinson said when asked what he focuses on when working with Brown. “Playing wide receiver is just like playing basketball. LeBron James and Steph Curry can never work on their jumpshot too much so when it comes to playing and breaking everything down, having the proper foot placement you can never work on that muscle memory too much.”"

Robinson isn’t just improving Brown’s skills. As his trainer, he’s constantly looking to add to his client’s game. While Brown already contains more skill than almost any wideout in the league, Robinson knows he can continue to get better.

"“One thing I did show Antonio when he started working with me was his curls and comeback routes,” Robinson told Scoop B. “He has a tendency of running around with his inside foot which causes you to run in place and it can cause you to get caught slipping at the top of your route so we worked on him planting and driving on his outside foot when he comes out on his break to give him more power and balance coming out of his cuts. Because he’s a smaller receiver we worked on a lot of power drills where I have him catch the football while somebody is pulling his arm to put him in the mindset of whether he’s open or not he knows that ball is his and those are some of the things that really helped to advance his mindset when the ball is in the air.”"

Brown’s future only continues to get brighter. In Pittsburgh, he’s a national treasure with nothing standing in his way from one day being considered one of the best ever. With his trainer taking a personal approach, his chances of greatness never reach a ceiling.

Next: 3 mid-round options for the Steelers

The Steelers are hoping he continues to be the unstoppable force they’ve come to know. A MVP caliber player, Brown is using this offseason to become even better. With Robinson behind him, expectations for 2018 are higher than anyone can imagine. Something Pittsburgh is going to use in their pursuit for Super Bowl number seven.

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