Diontae Johnson confident he showed Steelers made wise 3rd-round investment in him

A second-team All-Pro as a rookie? Even if it wasn’t at his given position, that’s a good start.

Eyebrows were raised in April when the Pittsburgh Steelers used their pick at the top of the third round on Diontae Johnson, a smallish wide receiver from Toledo.

By January, though, Johnson had finished his rookie season as the Steelers’ leader in receptions, and only James Conner would end up with more touchdowns. Johnson also would be recognized as second-team All-Pro as a punt returner by the Associated Press.

Was that enough for the 5-foot-10 Johnson to prove he has a bright future in the NFL?

“Most definitely,” Johnson said on the day the Steelers’ season ended. “You see what I did throughout the year. I made plays, and I showed I can be consistent — even also on punt returns I didn’t get back there until late (in the season).

“I’m just trying to top it off into 2020. I am trying to come back even better and showing it.”

Kevin Gorman: After giving a glimpse, Diontae Johnson ready to do big things for Steelers | https://t.co/hVDbdnrrke https://t.co/tBFeAvMBPL

— Kevin Gorman (@KGorman_Trib) December 15, 2019

Johnson began his rookie season as the Steelers’ No. 4 wide receiver. But after several drops in the first two games by veteran Donte Moncrief, Johnson was promoted to “starter” by Week 3. After a midseason lull in which some were questioning if Johnson had hit the rookie wall, he was arguably the Steelers’ most potent receiving target in December — albeit, faint praise with how feeble the offense was late in the season.

Over the final six games, Johnson averaged 44 offensive snaps and had 27 catches on 42 targets for 300 yards and scored three touchdowns. The touchdowns, targeted passes and receptions over those six games led all Steelers. He was second to James Washington in snaps played by a non-lineman and in receiving yards.

Johnson credited his adaptation to the pro level to his late position coach Daryl Drake. In the 3½ months Johnson was part of the organization before Drake’s sudden death during training camp in August, the two had forged a close relationship.

“Without him, I wouldn’t have been successful,” Johnson said, “because coming in I didn’t really know the playbook and he was always there for me and my teammates were there to help me with the plays. As I started sitting down with him, I started catching on the playbook and things started going smooth, and it showed as the season went on.”

Mike Tomlin likes #18. Showtime with Tomlin mic’ed up for the first #Steelers punt return in 4 years as Diontae Johnson provides 85 yards of splash pic.twitter.com/zPFqWRLa8e

— Bob Pompeani (@KDPomp) December 11, 2019

Even if Johnson doesn’t blossom as a receiver, the Steelers have to be pleased he appears to have finally solved their long-running quest to find a reliable punt returner not named Antonio Brown. Though Brown served well in that role deep into his career, it was long the Steelers’ preference not to have their All-Pro receiver taking reps on special teams.

Johnson also averaged 13.7 yards on 15 punt returns over the final six games, including a crucial touchdown on one during a Dec. 8 win at the Arizona Cardinals. That was the Steelers’ first regular-season punt return touchdown by someone other than Brown in the Mike Tomlin era.

Johnson’s numbers represented a significant improvement over the man he replaced, Ryan Switzer, who averaged 7.4 yards per return with the Steelers in 1½ seasons before landing on injured reserve in November.

Whether Johnson maintains All-Pro-level punt returning remains to be seen. Regardless, a safe bet is that with the return of Ben Roethlisberger and after a full year of seasoning at the NFL level, Johnson should see his receiving production continue an upward trajectory.

“When you have guy like that, it keeps everybody hungry because everybody wants to emerge and grow in their game,” Washington said of Johnson. “It’s a plus for us.”

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