Reinstatement is only half the process before Martavis Bryant returns to the Steelers
PITTSBURGH 鈥� The long and potentially arduous process of Martavis Bryant鈥檚 return to the Steelers has only just begun. Getting NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to reinstate Bryant is one step. But it will not be the last.
Following that, and just as importantly, Bryant will have to win back the trust of his coaches and teammates, most notably his quarterback.
That should not be a problem, according to Bryant鈥檚 agent.
鈥淗e鈥檚 in a good place mentally,鈥� Brian Fettner said on Monday. 鈥淗e doesn鈥檛 smoke anymore. There is going to be no more drama.鈥�
That鈥檒l be welcome news to the Steelers, who might have been playing for a Super Bowl had Bryant not been serving a one-year suspension for multiple violations of the league鈥檚 substance abuse policy.
Since coming to Pittsburgh in 2014, Bryant has provided as much drama off the field as on it. He has electrified with a remarkable mix of size and speed, scoring a remarkable 16 touchdowns in just 24 games and averaging 17.3 yards per catch, but Bryant鈥檚 very real human foibles have nearly derailed his star-crossed career.
Bringing back the star receiver for 2017 is a high-risk, high-reward proposition for the Steelers.
Bryant, who is still under contract for two more years, is just another failed or missed test away from possible banishment. Asked about Bryant鈥檚 future in Pittsburgh during his season-ending press conference last week, coach Mike Tomlin said he was in 鈥渨ait-and-see mode.鈥�
Though he鈥檚 been barred from the Steelers practice facility during his suspension, Bryant has kept in routine contact with his teammates. 鈥淗e definitely isn鈥檛 AWOL from his boys,鈥� Fettner said.
In September, veteran center Maurkice Pouncey said that, if reinstated, his teammates would welcome Bryant back with open arms.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a brother, we鈥檙e not going to leave that guy hanging,鈥� Pouncey said. 鈥淓veryone in life, and I鈥檓 living testament of it, everyone makes mistakes and you grow from them. It doesn鈥檛 make you a bad person, it makes you a better person, if you learn from it in the right way. If you keep making the same mistakes over and over again, you have to check yourself. But at the end of the day, you can鈥檛 leave a man like that. He needs us. He鈥檚 our brother.鈥�
Patching his relationship with Ben Roethlisberger might prove a little trickier.
Roethlisberger, who said he considered Bryant 鈥渓ike a brother鈥� and kept in communication daily with his receiver when he served a four-game suspension to start the 2015 season, seemed personally disappointed by Bryant鈥檚 one-year ban.
鈥淟ooking me in my eye and denying everything, it鈥檚 tough,鈥� Roethlisberger said in July. 鈥淚t disappoints you as a man and a guy who cared so much about him.鈥�
Fettner said he wasn鈥檛 sure if Roethlisberger has been in contact with Bryant but in an interview with 缅北禁地 Illustrated earlier this month, Bryant said of the quarterback: 鈥淚鈥檓 a grown man and he鈥檚 a grown man. I鈥檓 not going up to another grown man and explain my business to him.鈥�
At the time of his suspension last March, Fettner suggested that Bryant may have been suffering from depression, calling his client鈥檚 repeated failed tests 鈥渢he biggest cry for help I鈥檝e ever seen.鈥�
Citing legal reasons, Fettner declined to get into the specifics of his client鈥檚 mental health on Monday, saying only: 鈥淧layers are people too. He faces the same things that all of us do except that you put on pads and go out and play.鈥�
Fettner says Bryant, who is expecting the birth of his third child, a son, to be born in a few weeks, is as happy as he鈥檚 ever seen the 25-year-old. He is excited at the prospect of rejoining his teammates and resuming his career. Despite his personal troubles, Bryant is still a good person and worthy of redemption, according to his agent.
鈥淭o be honest, he鈥檚 way more grounded than people would think he is,鈥� Fettner said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 not at the club, he鈥檚 not punching his girlfriend. He鈥檚 never been arrested in his life. This isn鈥檛 public enemy No. 1 over here.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a shy guy. He鈥檚 a very 鈥榶es, sir鈥� or 鈥榥o, sir鈥� guy. This isn鈥檛 like 鈥極h my God, he needs to go through behavioral, anger management kind of thing.鈥�
Bryant鈥檚 only crime, he says, is smoking marijuana, a recreational drug that is decriminalized in 21 states.
The league has 60 days to review Bryant鈥檚 case and render a decision, though it has been known to take longer. Fettner is hopeful that a resolution will be reached by April and that Bryant can begin the NFL鈥檚 off-season workout program in Pittsburgh with his teammates.
After moving from Los Angeles to Nevada at his agent鈥檚 behest, Bryant has spent his time volunteering as a high school football coach in suburban Las Vegas. If, and when he does return to the Steelers, Fettner says he鈥檚 already in great shape.
鈥淗e鈥檚 going to be back and he鈥檚 going to be great,鈥� Fettner said.