Antonio Brown may never reach Jerry Rice’s level of accomplishments.
But according to Rice, he wants to wear the same uniform.
During an interview on 95.7 The Game, the league’s all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns said he spoke to Brown via FaceTime on Sunday, so he trusts his source.
“He wants to come here really badly,” Rice said, via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area.
That’s something Rice would like to see as well, if the Steelers want to ship Brown to the West Coast. He thinks as much for the obvious football benefit as much as the signal it would send to a fan base.
“This guy, man, he’s a totally, complete team player,” Rice said (though Ben Roethlisberger might disagree). “I don’t know what happened in Pittsburgh but I know that this guy, if he comes here to San Francisco, he’s going to do everything possible to help this team to win. . . .
“If it was left up to me, he’d be here in a heartbeat. It sends a message to the fans, that, ‘Hey, look, we’re not looking down the road to win. We’re looking to win right now.’ And he’s that type of player — big playmaker that can make those big plays and really put a lot of fans in the stands.”
The 30-year-old Brown is still producing at a high level, leading the league in touchdowns this year. But his act has worn thin on enough people that Steelers president Art Rooney II said it would be “hard to envision” he would stay there in 2019.
The 49ers have approximately $70 million in cap room, but that’s not a big deal since Brown is signed at reasonable rates for the next three years.
Compensating the Steelers would be another matter. The 49ers have just five draft picks, including the No. 2 and 36 overall picks.
