While Antonio Brown wants to spend his entire career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the same won't be said of impending free agent wide receiver Mike Wallace.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette acknowledges that the Steelers are likely to lose Wallace, who "turned off some in the front office and the coaching staff" with last year's holdout. The writing has been on the wall since head coach Mike Tomlin demoted Wallace to "co-starter" with Emmanuel Sanders in November. The speedster went on to complain about his role in coordinator Todd Haley's spread-the-wealth offense while struggling with concentration and effort.
The Steelers have noplans to slap Wallace with the franchise tag after he reportedly turned down an offer in the five-year, $50 million range last offseason. Considering his unique combination of talent, speed and youth, the organization does, however, expect other teams to value Wallace at that level.
There's no chance of a hometown discount for Pittsburgh. Recognizing an opportunity to set himself up for life, Wallace has "big plans" for himself and his family on the free agent market.
The Miami Herald has twicehinted at the receiver-needy Miami Dolphins' interest in Wallace.
New Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid could have his eyes on Wallace as a DeSean Jackson-style game-breaker if Dwayne Bowe isn't re-signed. The Indianapolis Colts have plenty of available salary-cap space, but lost their tie to Wallace when ex-Steelers coordinator Bruce Arians accepted the Arizona Cardinals' head-coaching job. Wide receiver isn't a big need in Arizona after Michael Floyd was selected in the first round of last year's draft.
Keep an eye on the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns, as they are expected to be in the best shape against the cap this year. Both AFC North teams are familiar with Wallace's game.
Follow Chris Wesseling on Twitter @ChrisWesseling.
