Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is doing his part to ensure that wide receiver Antonio Brown doesn't remain one of the NFL's most underappreciated superstars.
After watching Brown extend to 24 his NFL-record consecutive games with at least five catches and 50 yards, Tomlin compared him to the most dominant player in football.
"Antonio is playing at that type of level at wide receiver, a J.J. Watt-type of level," Tomlin said Tuesday, via Scott Brown of ESPN.com. "He's one of the best in the world at what he does and he's mentally and physically on top of his game."
Brown is on pace for a franchise-record 120 receptions and 1,704 yards despite drawing frequent double teams.
"He's a known issue (for defenses) but he still performs," Tomlin continued. "We can say similar things about guys like J.J. Watt. We knew what he was capable [of] when we were getting ready to play him but it still doesn't stop the storm from coming."
At 5-foot-10 and under 190 pounds, Brown isn't beating defenses with imposing measurables in the fashion of Calvin Johnson, Julio Jones, Dez Bryant or Demaryius Thomas. Instead, Ben Roethlisberger credits his go-to receiver with the best fundamentals in the league.
"I have never seen anybody utilize their hands, feet and eyes the way that he does," Roethlisberger explained. "You get the ball in his hands and a big play can happen at any time."
Two years after awarding Brown the same lucrative contract extension rejected by Mike Wallace, it's clear the Steelers kept the better player.
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