The Pittsburgh Steelers offense has not been good through five games of the 2023 season. The offense has just six touchdowns, and the passing attack hasn’t been consistent enough. But the Steelers have been without one of their most important offensive weapons in wide receiver Diontae Johnson, and his return in Week Seven could be a major difference maker for Pittsburgh’s offense.
In the team’s win over the Baltimore Ravens, where they were down both Johnson and tight end Pat Freiermuth, wide receiver George Pickens totaled 58% of the team’s receiving yards. Allen Robinson II is reliable, but he’s not a guy that defenses have to worry about. He can make plays underneath and be a sure-handed target, but his five catches for 29 yards against Baltimore show more or less the type of receiver he is at this point in his career.
Johnson brings a dynamic threat to Pittsburgh’s passing offense, alongside Pickens. Teams can’t just key on Pickens with Johnson in the fold, and Pickens’ development over the past few weeks having to be the team’s No. 1 receiver means Pittsburgh will have two guys who have the talent and capabilities of a top receiver.
Given that Johnson can get it done underneath and create yards after the catch in addition to being a threat downfield, he’s going to open things up for the Steelers’ offense. Kenny Pickett hasn’t looked great at quarterback, but the fact he hasn’t had one of his best weapons all season does need to be taken into consideration. Johnson had three grabs for 48 yards before leaving in Week One’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers, and that sort of production over a full game is going to be nice to have in the fold.
Outside of opening things up for Pickens a little bit and the offense as a whole, someone else who might benefit is Pat Freiermuth when he returns from his hamstring issue. He had a really slow start to the season when he was healthy, with just eight catches for 53 yards. But he was also facing more attention given Johnson’s absence, so he could potentially see his usage and numbers increase with Johnson back.
The Steelers offense needs a spark after the bye week, and Johnson just may be the spark. He’s a high-volume receiver, with 140+ targets each of the last three seasons. Despite some derision for the fanbase over his previous drop issues or his penchant for running horizontally instead of vertically, he’s a very good wide receiver and someone the Steelers have been sorely missing. His return could make things a lot easier for Pickett and make Pittsburgh’s offense look like one that actually belongs in the NFL.
