Mike Tomlin and Ben Roethlisberger haven't spoken with disgruntled receiver Martavis Bryant yet. But they both plan to do so Wednesday.
The conversations might be completely different.
The head coach and quarterback seem to be taking a good-cop, bad-cop approach to dealing with Bryant's outburst on social media Sunday night in regard to his role and playing time in the Steelers offense.
“We’ve covered a lot of ground (with Bryant),” Tomlin said Tuesday. “It’s obvious we've still got more ground to cover with him. He was out of bounds with some of his actions, with some of the things he said on social media. It will be dealt with in an appropriate manner.”
What that manner will be is something Tomlin did not wish to disclose.
“I’ll rain down my judgment and we’ll move forward,” Tomlin said. “He’s a good guy to work with in the building.
"He’s worked diligently. (However) he’s said things when he’s not around us that’s been somewhat of a distraction because I have to field questions about him.”
At question were some posts on Instagram that Bryant made hours after the team's 29-14 victory Sunday at Heinz Field against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Bryant caught just one pass for three yards on two targets and gained two yards on an end-around in the game. Afterward, he responded to some posts directed at him saying he had fallen behind rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster.
Bryant responded by saying there was no way Smith-Schuster is a better player, among other things. The posts have since been deleted.
Bryant attempted to explain his statements in a story in which he spoke to ESPN's Josina Anderson.
"I just want to be happy, whether it's here or it's somewhere else," Bryant told ESPN. "I just want to help contribute. I just want to be the best player that I can on and off the field ... and I want to be given the chance to be that. But I would like for it to be here. If not, then, oh well. Just got to move on."
While Tomlin played the role of bad cop in regard to Bryant's comments, Roethlisberger said he had reached out to the receiver Monday via text message. The two had to address it via text messages because Bryant called in sick on Monday for the fourth time in the past month and was not at the Rooney Sports Complex.
His message to Bryant?
"Come talk to your quarterback," Roethlisberger said Tuesday on his weekly call in to 93.7 The Fan.
Roethlisberger said he and Bryant will speak at length Wednesday, but added he was surprised by Bryant's posts.
"I spoke with (Bryant) yesterday a little bit on the phone," Roethlisberger said. "We're going to talk tomorrow in person at the facility. ... These things were surprising because I don't see any of the pout, quit, anything from him on the field. That's why it really surprises me when these talks come. On the field, he's giving effort."
Roethlisberger did take issue with Bryant bringing Smith-Schuster's name into the situation.
"You never want to go at any teammates," Roethlisberger said.
Bryant's posts came just days after he had to dispel notions that he was requesting a trade when verified reports surfaced that his agent had done so several weeks ago. The news broke in the hours after the team's win at Kansas City two weeks ago.
Roethlisberger and others universally backed Bryant following that news, and the receiver addressed it both with his teammates and the media.
This time, however, things are a little different.
"I told him, 'Ta, the one thing you haven't done is come talk to me,'" Roethlisberger said of his conversation with Bryant Monday. "Come talk to me. How can I help you? Let's figure out a way that, me as a quarterback, I can help you. Let's figure this thing out together, because he really is a good teammate. I know it doesn't seem like it. You guys might be rolling your eyes. But he is. We've just got to talk and figure this thing out."
Tomlin reiterated the team's stance that Bryant is not available via a trade. The league deadline is Oct. 31.
Bryant would figure to have little value on the trade market, regardless. He's twice been suspended for violations of the league's substance abuse policy, including all of the 2016 season. And he's struggled to re-establish himself as the deep threat he was before his suspension.
He scored 14 touchdowns and averaged 17.3 yards per catch in his first 21 career games before the suspension. This season, he's caught 18 passes for 234 yards and one score.
But the Steelers are continuing to stick by him after not releasing him when he was suspended. What consequences will come out of this latest episode remain to be seen.
Smith-Schuster has been placed in concussion protocol, according to Tomlin, after speaking with reporters Monday. Players in concussion protocol are not permitted to speak to the media.
That could mean the Steelers need Bryant when they travel to Detroit next Sunday, something Tomlin will have to take into account when he disciplines the receiver.