Redskins' Ron Rivera on Antonio Brown After Workout Video: 'He's a Great Player'

Washington Redskins head coach Ron Rivera sidestepped a question Wednesday about whether the team is interested in signing free-agent wide receiver Antonio Brown.

"I know who Antonio Brown is, and he's a great player," Rivera told reporters while noting he wants an opportunity to evaluate his roster's young wideouts.

Brown worked out with Redskins quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr. in May:

Washington only has one receiver over the age of 25 on its roster (Cody Latimer). Terry McLaurin, 24, led the team with 58 catches for 919 yards and seven touchdowns during the 2019 season.

McLaurin is joined by Steven Sims Jr., Trey Quinn and Kelvin Harmon to create a high-upside group. The front office also selected Antonio Gandy-Golden in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL draft to add further depth to the receiver room.

The Redskins continue to lack a proven No. 1 target, however, a role filled by Brown en route to seven Pro Bowl selections during his nine years with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2010-18).

Brown's previous on-field success has been overshadowed by recent off-field problems during short stints with the Oakland Raiders and New England Patriots in 2019.

A public falling-out with Raiders general manager Mike Mayock saw Brown depart Oakland before ever playing for the team. The Patriots signed Brown to a one-year deal almost immediately, but they released him in September after SI.com published threatening text messages sent to a woman who had accused Brown of sexual misconduct in an article published by the same outlet days earlier.

The messages came from the same phone the woman had previously used to contact Brown while arranging to paint a mural at his home. While she was working there, she said he approached her naked with only a towel covering his genitals.

This came shortly after the Patriots had kept Brown after former trainer Britney Taylor said in a federal lawsuit he had sexually assaulted her three times, twice in June 2017 and a third time in May 2018, when Taylor said Brown raped her.

Brown has denied the allegations, and the lawsuit is still active. He was also arrested in March on charges of burglary with assault or battery, burglary of an unoccupied conveyance and criminal mischief after he was allegedly involved in an assault on a moving-truck driver. The NFL has also yet to announce if he will face punishment under the personal conduct policy.

In January, the 31-year-old Miami native told Josh Peter of USA Today he hoped to resume his NFL career in 2020.

Before his lost season, Brown remained one of the league's most dangerous offensive players with 104 catches for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Steelers in 2018.

He'd be a nice fit for Washington as it attempts to surround Haskins with more talent after an up-and-down rookie season that saw him tally seven touchdowns and seven interceptions in nine games (seven starts).