The Pittsburgh Steelers traded WR Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers earlier this month as Johnson was set to enter a contract year, acquiring CB Donte Jackson and swapping picks, moving the Steelers up to the board and giving them an additional sixth-round pick. Speaking to Rob King of Steelers.com, Steelers general manager Omar Khan called the trade a “win-win” and said Jackson is a player that they’ve had their eyes on for a while.
“Corner was a need position, Donte’s somebody that we got to know well through the draft process. He was a free agent a few years ago, really followed his game, played him a couple of times and the opportunity was there,” Khan said. “They were interested in trading him, and it just felt like it was a win-win for both sides. We’re excited to have him, think it’s gonna be a good fit for us.”
Trading Johnson for Jackson opened up a need at wide receiver, but the Steelers have been building up their receiving depth with the additions of Van Jefferson and Quez Watkins. While neither are much to get super excited about, they’re fine depth options at receiver as the team looks to add another impact player opposite George Pickens, likely through the draft.
Jackson is coming off a season in which he played all 17 games but was pretty inconsistent. He has 14 career interceptions although he didn’t have any last season, but as Khan said, corner was a need and Jackson will give the Steelers someone who can play outside along with Joey Porter Jr. Slot corner remains a need and the Steelers could use more depth on the outside as well, but trading for Jackson helped them fill one of their needs in relatively short order with a starter-capable player.
Pittsburgh also saves money on the deal after reworking Jackson’s contract, and that money could come in handy as the offseason progresses and the Steelers continue building up their roster. With a number of holes remaining, the draft won’t be the be all and end all for roster building, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Steelers continue to be active in the trade market or look to sign some veterans even after the draft. The goal for this season is to finally end Pittsburgh’s playoff win drought, and I have little doubt that Khan will be doing everything he can to make that happen.
