For former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Diontae Johnson, it’s been a busy last eight months. He’s been traded twice over that span, first by the Steelers to the Carolina Panthers in March only to be dealt by the Panthers to the Baltimore Ravens earlier this week. There appears to be a consistent theme in both cases. As shared by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Johnson’s locker room presence was the issue, not his talent.
“Part of the thing with Diontae Johnson, he has been a problem in the past,” Breer said in a new video for SI. “Everybody saw what happened at the end with Pittsburgh and the reason why he was traded from the Steelers in the first place. It wasn’t because he couldn’t play. It was that they had gotten fed up with him.”
While neither the Steelers nor Johnson have explicitly said why he was traded, other than denying he did not request a trade, Breer’s comments track. Talented and flashy as Johnson could be, an excellent route runner, hard on-field worker, and the ability to make some spectacular catches, (while dropping too many others) he wore his emotions on his sleeve. He wasn’t happy struggling to get the ball in Pittsburgh’s poor passing attack.
Playing for an offense that threw fewer touchdown passes than anyone else and leading Johnson to set an NFL record in 2022 for most receptions – 86 – without a touchdown in a single season. He came back to score five times in 2023 but appeared disgruntled with the team. After an ugly loss to the Cleveland Browns in which QB Kenny Pickett didn’t cross 100 passing yards until the game’s final play, Johnson reportedly got into it with players and coaches and had to be held back by teammates. Per Adam Schefter last season:
“One source told ESPN that Johnson, the Steelers’ second-leading receiver, continued ‘chirping’ at the Steelers’ coaches all the way into the locker room, where [Minkah] Fitzpatrick — a three-time first-team All Pro — began arguing with Johnson. The words between Johnson and Fitzpatrick became “heated,” in the words of another source, before [Cameron] Heyward and [T.J.] Watt intervened and prevented the situation from getting worse.”
On his podcast, Cam Heyward downplayed but did not deny the report. After the season, the Steelers hinted at changing the culture of their locker room. And out went Johnson for CB Donte Jackson and a late-round pick swap that the Steelers have benefitted from. Still, they never replaced Johnson as the No. 2 receiver in their offense, missing out on all the big names wheeled and dealt since.
Johnson seemed to sour on Carolina just as quickly. With QB Bryce Young struggling as much as any No. 1 pick quarterback has, it reportedly took only two weeks for frustration to mount. With Johnson in the final year of his contract and the Panthers’ season down the tubes, they dealt him to Baltimore for pennies in what could amount to a difference of just 15 draft picks.
Breer noted that a strong offense and culture like the Ravens could placate Johnson better than his previous stops. Still, he’ll have to get comfortable with being a role player in a run-heavy offense with plenty of pass-game targets in WR Zay Flowers and TEs Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely. Johnson will face his former former team in Weeks 11 and 16.
A big second half of the season for Johnson could lead to a nice 2025 payday. But wherever his next stop, the team will have to understand for all his talent, things can go sideways with him in a hurry.
