Antonio Brown hasn’t just been dominating the NFL over the last two years: He’s been doing it with style. Whether it’s flashy catches or viral touchdown celebrations, the camera is drawn to Antonio Brown.
This year has been extra flashy, as Brown has been showing off custom cleats throughout the 2016 regular season. It’s a collaboration between him and Corey Pane, the custom artist that has been painting Brown’s cleats all season.
Brown came into the league in 2010, and that’s around the time he met the artist from West Hartford. Pane doesn’t have a business painting custom cleats, but he may need to expand after all the coverage he’s received this season.
It started with blue cleats in Week One, for which Brown was fined $9,000. Pane said that Brown "liked it and wanted to keep a different vibe going every week.” So the pair kept working on shoes, regardless of if the NFL allowed it.
He wore custom cleats again two weeks later, only for the NFL to demand that Brown change his cleats at halftime. Brown and Pane kept the collaboration going, but resolved to only wear the cleats during pre game warmups.
Take a look at Pane’s best work over the season, ranked by me with photos by Getty:
PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 02: Antonio Brown #84 of the Pittsburgh Steelers warms up wearing cleats honoring Arnold Palmer before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Heinz Field on October 2, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
Third Place: Brown’s Four Children
For Week Three, Brown went back to blue. Pane drew up a shoe with the heads of all four of Brown’s children for a game against Philadelphia. Because of the blue color, the NFL told Brown he had to take the shoes off at halftime. Brown chose blue because he believes the color to represent “trustworthiness and calm."
Brown tweeted “The reason I lace them up everyday” with a picture of his cleats for the day. Brown has three sons and a daughter, named Antonio Jr., Autonomy, Ali and Antanyiah. Two children are from a previous relationship with Shameika Brailsford, and two are from current girlfriend Chelsie Kyriss.
Runner-up: Miami’s Fallen Heroes
In an October game against Miami, Brown and Pane worked on a special design to honor Miami’s recent losses. Legendary street fighter Kimbo Slice passed away at age 42 in June, and he was considered a local hero in Miami. On the other side, Brown paid tribute to Jose Fernandez, the Marlins pitcher who had tragically been killed in a boating accident just days before the game in Miami.
One side of the shoe has a closeup of Fernandez’s face, and another has him throwing the ball. The front of the shoe has stitching like that of a baseball. The Kimbo side features the fighter wearing a do-rag and holding a sledgehammer across his back. The Steelers struggled in that game against Miami, but got revenge later in the season by eliminating them from the postseason.
Winner: Salute to Pat Tillman
The Miami cleats were nice, but these are phenomenal. Wearing Stars and Stripes is always going to win points, but Brown took it over the top with a salute to an NFL hero. Brown wore the cleats for Veteran’s Day weekend, and showed them off during warmups before his team took on the Cowboys.
The cleats are painted similar to the American flag, with different portraits of Tillman on each foot. One side has Tillman with long hair in an Arizona Cardinals jersey, while the other features his portrait during his time serving with the Army Rangers. When he tweeted the shoes, he added, "All caps - HERO ! Sunday vibes !! Thank you for your service Pat Tillman."
Antonio Brown’s Cleats: Best Custom Designs of 2016