Steelers' Martavis Bryant wants 'man-to-man' chat with Ben Roethlisberger
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Martavis Bryant said he’d like to meet “man-to-man” with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who was highly critical of Bryant for failing the league’s substance abuse policy — which cost him four games in 2015 and all of last season.
Roethlisberger had said that Bryant lied to him and that the wide receiver with a high ceiling “let down” the team.
Bryant, who is gearing up for the Steelers' training camp in a couple of weeks and claims he has been clean for more than a year, said he and the Pittsburgh QB “need to” sit down together to clear the air.
“We should have a man-to-man. Because some of the things he put out there about me, I kind of didn’t agree with how he did it,” Bryant told ESPN. “So I want to sit down and hear his own opinion.
"At that time, I was going through a lot of stuff. I wasn't really even worried about his opinion at that time, because there was just a lot that was going on. He's my brother. I love him. But at the same time, I have my own family outside of football. I have my own problems."
The desire for a face-to-face meeting is mutual. After Bryant was reinstated in April, Roethlisberger told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette he hopes Bryant “comes up to me and we go somewhere to talk in private,” yet cautioned that Bryant would have to “win back everybody’s trust,” not just his.
“He has to show with his work ethic and by staying clean that he cares — really cares — about us. If he does that, it'll be huge,” Roethlisberger said. “He can really help us. He can be so great."
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