Martavius Bryant apparently wants a trade out of Pittsburgh

Fresh off a massive win in Kansas City, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Martavis Bryant has reportedly requested a trade.

This one frankly seems like it came way out of left field. The report comes from none other than Ian Rapoport, so this isn’t some wild speculation.

The Pittsburgh organization and Bryant have had a bumpy ride. Bryant has been suspended on multiple occasions and it seems like he never quite found his footing with the Steelers. He has clearly been the third fiddle, but he’s also teammates with two All-Pros in WR Antonio Brown and RB Le’veon Bell. Some of the past few weeks worth of drama from the Steelers seem to make a bit more sense now. If Bryant has been unhappy, there’s bound to be friction in the locker room.

From a simple skill set perspective, Bryant could be one of the top receivers in football. He has the size to fight off any defensive back, he has the speed to torch anyone and he’s got moves in the open field and a nose for the end zone. Critics could point to drops and inconsistency. It’s somewhat understandable to have lapses when you’re not getting fed the ball like other teammates.

The other side of that coin is that the Steelers kept him around even after the suspension, likely in the hopes that the talent would win out. It hasn’t worked for anyone at this point. Bryant has been a non-factor for five out of six games so far. this would also explain why QB Ben Roethlisberger made comments during this week about giving Bryant a break.

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It’s impossible to know what exactly has gone wrong without being in the Pittsburgh locker room. What seems to be perfectly clear is Bryant is not long for Pittsburgh. Whether the team can make a trade this season remains to be seen.