Weeks after the Pittsburgh Steelers traded WR Diontae Johnson, fans still struggle to reconcile how they “won” the trade. Outside of minor draft compensation, their return on investment principally consists of CB Donte Jackson. Based on the coverage of the trade, there appears to be universal agreement that Johnson is the better player.
A report surfaced claiming that Johnson requested a trade from the Steelers, though head coach Mike Tomlin denied that. Notably, he did not deny the fact that QB Kenny Pickett requested a trade. Still, he spoke in such a way as to indicate that they made the move entirely to acquire Jackson.
He alluded to years of interest in the former LSU standout, which Jackson mentioned as well. The latter hinted that the Steelers attempted to acquire him at the trade deadline last year. Yet many, including local reporters, remain skeptical that there wasn’t more to the whole affair.
“I wasn’t necessarily buying what Mike Tomlin said down in Orlando at owners’ meetings about it was a player-for-player trade. They liked Jackson, Diontae Johnson was not in the doghouse or whatever, that there wasn’t anything going on internally that made them want to move on from him,” Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette told Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller yesterday on 93.7 The Fan.
He added, “I don’t think I believe that, and if that’s the case, then, okay, they really are bigger believers in Donte Jackson than those of us in the media and fan realm.” Of course, the latter point is entirely irrelevant and without value, but nevertheless.
I have no compelling reason to believe that Tomlin lied about prior interest in Jackson. Even more so, I have no reason to believe Jackson lied about Tomlin and the Steelers showing interest in him. He never forgets the players that he likes coming out of school.
At the same time, that doesn’t mean they didn’t trade Johnson for other reasons. They could have theoretically traded for Jackson without trading one of their starting wide receivers. They filled a hole in the cornerback room but arguably opened a bigger one in the receiver room.
I don’t know if Johnson requested a trade, and I’m skeptical about which reports to believe about his discontent. There was enough smoke, however, to believe there was a fire of one kind or another.
At the very least, the Steelers likely recognized they weren’t going to re-sign Johnson in 2025. At least, dealing him now, they bring in a cornerback in Jackson who can start and whom they can extend. And it’s quite possibly, indeed likely, that they like Jackson a lot more than Batko, you, or I do. Then again, he didn’t get a press conference, did he?
