Joe Sargent/Getty Images The Green Bay Packers are reportedly not looking to make a trade for Pittsburgh Steelers superstar wide receiver Antonio Brown. On Friday, Rob Demovsky of ESPN reported the Packers "won't jump in now and were not involved before" despite a Thursday report from ESPN's Dianna Russini suggesting Green Bay was interested. Although it appeared the Brown saga was nearing its conclusion Thursday night, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported early Friday morning that a rumored trade with the Buffalo Bills fell through late in the process. Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted the receiver "nixed" the deal because he didn't want to play for Buffalo. Now the question is what other potential suitors may emerge for Brown. He's one of the NFL's top playmakers, but he's leaving the Steelers on a sour note after a rumored dispute with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The Packers made sense on paper as they seek a top target to pair with Davante Adams for Aaron Rodgers, but it doesn't sound like Green Bay is going to join the sweepstakes. Video Play Button Videos you might like Rapoport previously reported the Arizona Cardinals, Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders were among the teams with some level of interest in the seven-time Pro Bowler. It's unclear whether any of those teams are close to meeting the Steelers' asking price, though.<doc-sep>NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - DECEMBER 23: Antonio Brown #84 of the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrates a touchdown during the second half against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on December 23, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) Don’t expect the Green Bay Packers to make a trade for Antonio Brown. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Pittsburgh Steelers want to move quickly with a potential Antonio Brown trade, and hope to have it completed this week. There are a number of reasons why the Green Bay Packers likely won’t be involved. While the Packers have two first-round picks and could potentially offer the No. 30 selection, the biggest issue could be the contract. On Instagram Live last month, Brown told teams with guaranteed money to call him. One team with lots of money available is the New York Jets, but Rapoport noted that they no longer have interest in trading for Brown. But it’s not like New York doesn’t have draft picks to trade away, either. As well as the third overall pick, the Jets own four selections inside the top 106 overall, including two third-rounders. Even if they had to give away both third-round picks, they could potentially trade down from No. 3 and gain a couple of mid-rounders in return, while also trading for Brown. Rapoport also noted that the Oakland Raiders have “stayed consistently in the mix”. If the Raiders make a serious offer, it will be tough for the Packers to compete. The Raiders possibly have the most to offer the Steelers. Like the Packers, Oakland owns 10 draft picks, but three are in the first round. The Raiders will pick five times inside the top 66 overall, and own the No. 4, No. 24 and No. 27 overall selections. Also, according to Over The Cap, Oakland has over $71 million in cap room, sixth-most in the NFL. The Raiders could almost certainly afford to offer Brown a new long-term deal. Perhaps the only advantage the Packers have over the Raiders is that they play in the NFC. Anything can happen in the NFL, and Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst has shown a willingness to make bold moves over the past year. Maybe Green Bay will be among the teams seriously interested in trading for Brown, but I think it’s highly unlikely they make a trade this week.<doc-sep>Getty Images The Packers may be interested in Antonio Brown. Unless they aren’t. The swirling confusion over the wantaway Steelers wide receiver’s situation has led to some ESPN-on-ESPN crime this morning. Last night, ESPN’s Dianna Russini said the Packers were “interested and looking to make moves per sources.” This morning, ESPN.com Packers beat reporter Rob Demovsky refuted that, in fairly explicit terms. “The Packers won’t jump in now and were not involved before,” Demovsky wrote. “They never had any conversations with the Steelers about the receiver.” While new Packers General Manager Brian Gutekunst has promised to be more aggressive than his predecessor, Brown doesn’t seem like a philosophical fit in Green Bay anyway. The presence of Aaron Rodgers would have likely appealed to him more than Josh Allen, but it’s impossible to know if Brown would have balked at another cold-weather locale.<doc-sep>Reports suggested a trade surrounding Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown would be in place by Friday. But after a weird saga with the Bills on Thursday night, the interest in Brown appears to be dwindling. There have been several reports in recent weeks about teams' lack of interest in Brown, essentially saying those teams will not deal with the WR. In subtracting them from the equation, we can get a better feel for where Brown might end up in 2019, so let's look at some teams that have reportedly backed out of a deal. MORE: Brown's one reason for acting like a heel should be clear Buffalo Bills A statement from GM Brandon Beane. pic.twitter.com/GK8wMqFTCA — Buffalo Bills (@buffalobills) March 8, 2019 Doesn't get much more official than that. There are conflicting reports on when and why this deal fell apart, but in the end, it doesn't matter. Buffalo is moving on, and we will not see Brown making catches for the Bills. Green Bay Packers While the Antonio Brown situation rolls on, the Packers won't jump in now and were not involved before. They never had any conversations with the Steelers about the receiver, according to league sources with knowledge of the Packers' actions. https://t.co/Kg5nLNjI8p — Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) March 8, 2019 This is some ESPN-vs.-ESPN reporting, as Dianna Russini said the Packers were interested in Brown. But Demovsky, ESPN's Packers beat writer, seems emphatic that Green Bay won't be trading for Brown. Watching Aaron Rodgers throw to AB would have been fun, but that QB-to-WR connection will have to be saved for fantasy football rosters. New Orleans Saints On March 1, NFL Network's Michael Silver reported the Saints were interested in Brown. Just six days later, it was reported by Russini that the Saints were "out" of the AB sweepstakes. Maybe the Steelers' asking price was too high, so New Orleans stopped expressing interest in a deal. MORE: Brown's trade fits suddenly low on desirable destinations Tennessee Titans In that same report, Russini claimed the Titans were out on AB. Brown to Tennessee might seem like an odd fit, but according to NFL reporter Paul Kuharsky, the Titans "seriously contemplated making a move." Neither report explains why the Titans dropped out, however. Denver Broncos Russini added the Broncos are also "out" on Brown, with CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora saying Denver was "never in it." Whatever the case, it doesn't appear John Elway will be pairing Joe Flacco with Brown. Tampa Bay Buccaneers NBC Sports' Peter King listed the Bucs as a possibility for Brown, but that never seemed likely after Bruce Arians publicly called the receiver a "diva." This led to Brown calling Arians out on Twitter. The relationship between coach and player appears fractured already. (And, just for good measure, Russini reported the Bucs are also "out" on a trade for Brown.) New York Jets La Canfora's report also claimed the Jets were "never in" trade discussions for Brown. This contradicts an NFL Network report that said New York "made contact" with Pittsburgh regarding a deal. But a day later, NFL Network also said the Jets are "out" on Brown. There's also this from SNY on why a deal wouldn't make sense for the Jets: [Ralph] Vacchiano notes that the Jets are wary of Brown's baggage, genuinely like their receiving corps, and don't have a second-round pick to dangle via trade -- and have only six picks overall, so they know they don't have what it takes to get him. Arizona Cardinals Oddly enough, the same scenario as the one with the Jets has played out with the Cardinals. La Canfora says they were never in it, and NFL Network has confirmed they are "out" of the race. In addition to NFL Network, several local reporters also have said Arizona is not a trade destination for Brown. Contrary to reports - the Arizona Cardinals are NOT interested in trading for Antonio Brown. I have said this before but many national guys put Arizona as the team most interested - That is not true. — John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) March 4, 2019 Others have said this previously but I will be a chimer. Cardinals have no interest in Antonio Brown. — Kent Somers (@kentsomers) March 5, 2019 So much for a Kyler Murray throwing bombs to Brown in Kliff Kingsbury's offense. Washington Redskins Redskins sources also share they are not in the Antonio Brown sweepstakes. One Gruden brother out... — Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) March 7, 2019 Washington apparently is too busy trading for Case Keenum to bother trading for Brown. Honorable Mentions All of the above teams have been reported as "out." But there are some other teams that likely will not trade for Brown. NFL Network's Steve Wyche reported in late Februrary that the San Francisco 49ers "won’t be in play for Brown." But he prefaced that by saying "as of now." There's still a chance San Francisco gets in the game later, but it's worth noting that the front office doesn't appear interested. The Kansas City Chiefs are also worth mentioning, because La Canfora said the team expressed interest in a trade, but Pittsburgh doesn't want to make one of the AFC's top teams even tougher. So while the Chiefs aren't "out," per se, it seems unlikely Brown will be traded to Kansas City.<doc-sep>
Keith Srakocic/Associated Press NFL fans reportedly almost had the chance to watch Antonio Brown catching passes from Aaron Rodgers next season. According to Dianna Russini of ESPN, the Green Bay Packers "were in on" Brown as a potential trade target and "looking to make moves." They apparently couldn't land him, though, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported late Thursday night Pittsburgh was "closing in on" moving Brown to the Buffalo Bills. However, Vic Carucci of Sirius XM cited a source who said the Buffalo trade was not "imminent" and another who called it "unlikely." Green Bay missed the playoffs the last two seasons and is trying to catch up to the Chicago Bears, who featured the league's top defense in points allowed in 2018. Brown is the type of game-breaker who could put up numbers even against that stout Chicago group and give Rodgers, 35, another elite playmaker in the closing stretch of his career. Brown is a seven-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro who surpassed 1,200 receiving yards in each of the last six seasons. He also tallied a career-high 15 touchdown receptions at 30 years old. Pairing that production with Davante Adams' would have given the Packers arguably the league's top one-two receiver punch. Instead, this reported trade gives Bills quarterback Josh Allen a legitimate No. 1 option as Buffalo looks to close the gap with the defending champion New England Patriots in the AFC East. Video Play Button Videos you might like Brown's presence will also create additional running room for LeSean McCoy, as defenses won't be able to stack the box with the game-breaker on the outside. While the Brown and McCoy combination is intriguing, the receiver would have been in a far more dynamic situation had the Packers parlayed their interest into an actual trade.