WR Diontae Johnson has been back on the field now for three games since injuring his hamstring in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season opener. While he has had some miscues here and there, his positive impact on the offense as a whole has been undeniable.
Beginning purely from a production standpoint, he has picked up 20 catches for 254 yards over the past three games, including his first touchdown on Thursday night since the 2021 season. And it just so happened to be a game-winning score from the arm of QB Kenny Pickett, the first of potentially many for the duo, the young arm already having several with WR George Pickens.
While his rapport with Pickens has been more immediate as a member of the same draft class, it’s been more work with Johnson, but we are tasting the fruits of those labors now. It’s still coming together, but you can see how the ingredients of what Johnson and Pickens individually offer Pickett in the passing game on the whole.
“Just my ability to draw attention, having George on the other side just allows Kenny to know who he has out there”, Johnson said after the game, via the team’s website, when asked what has been the key to his ability to contribute at the level he has since returning from injury.
“It makes him comfortable because he knows who’s gonna get open”, he added, referring to Pickett. “Just by me being able to route-run and do what I do best, and I showed that tonight”.
Johnson is correctly regarded as one of the best route-running wide receivers in the NFL today. Like few others in the league, he has the ability to get open consistently, which explains why he has a 31.5-percent target share over the past two games, the recipient of 23 of the Steelers’ 73 pass attempts in that span.
The Steelers have had to play without Johnson for most of the season, missing four games after going down with a hamstring injury early in the second half of the opener. While Pickens had some big games in his absence, the passing game as a whole has flowed better since his return.
Pickens’ target share has understandably dropped since Johnson’s return, with 18 targets overall over the past three games. He had 33 total targets in the four games that the veteran receiver missed due to injury, averaging 8.25 targets per game.
Perhaps he’s found that transition a bit frustrating, as recent indications may suggest, but it’s certainly what’s in the best interests of the team to have both of them contributing consistently. And frankly, Pickens primarily has himself to blame over the past two weeks for failing to finish several of his opportunities, including a relatively easy touchdown on Thursday night, the same night Johnson got his first in years.
