Antonio Brown onThe Masked Singer.Photo: Michael Becker/FOX
Fox viewers were thrilled to see who was underneath the hippo costume on Wednesday’s premiere ofThe Masked Singer,but the coach and players of the Pittsburgh Steelers were likely less so.
Antonio Brown, the Pennsylvania football team’s wide receiver, took the stage when the episode was filmed in June,according to theWashington Post— just a few months before the 31-year-old athlete started skipping practices in late December and didn’t play in Sunday’s season-ending game that the Steelers needed to win in order to make the playoffs.
They did, but barely, and still missed out on the playoffs for the first time since 2013,thePittsburgh Post-Gazettereports.
Meanwhile,The Ringer reportsrumors are swirling that the Miami native has asked for a trade, which his coach, Mike Tomlin, denied during a press conference on Wednesday. It took place only a few hours before the episode aired. Tomlin also said that Brown was absent from Sunday’s game “due to injury and lack of communication,” according to thePost.
CBS Sports reportsthat Brown allegedly got into a dispute with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger last Wednesday, and afterward, he skipped all practices and team meetings. He showed up on Sunday expecting to play, but Tomlin reportedly didn’t allow it.
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According to thePost, Brown was seen at the game wearing a fur coat and left the Pittsburgh stadium at halftime. Tomlin said at the conference that he hasn’t spoken to the athlete since.
He’s made no formal statement about his professional controversy sinceThe Masked Singerpremiered.
Reps from the Pittsburgh Steelers did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
source: people.com
