The Pittsburgh Steelers voted wide receiver/kick returner Antonio Brown as team MVP, the team announced Thursday. Brown is the first wideout to earn team MVP honors since Hines Ward shared the 2005 award with nose tackle Casey Hampton.
Brown's 2048 all-purpose yards (1018 receiving, 664 on kick returns, 324 on punt returns, 41 rushing) to date set the Steelers' single season record in that category, and he still has one game left to pad to that total. The second-year man leads the NFL in yards per touch (16.5) in 2011.
Might some other Steelers players been more deserving of the award? Pittsburgh media seem divided on the issue. Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review names Ben Roethlisberger, Ike Taylor, Mike Wallace, Troy Polamalu, and James Harrison as better candidates than Brown. But Dave Bryan of Steelers Depot cites Brown's success on third down as a strong case for his MVP candidacy.
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