WR Diontae Johnson confident he will come off IR after bye for Steelers’ next game
The minimum time for his injured reserve stint having expired, does Diontae Johnson believe he is ready to return in time for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ next game?
“(Heck) yeah, I’m coming back,” the team’s veteran No. 1 receiver said Tuesday.
Johnson has not played since suffering a hamstring injury early in the third quarter of the season opener. He went on IR eight days later, and league rules require a player so designated to miss at least four games.
The Steelers, who went 3-1 in Johnson’s absence, are idle this week. Their next game is Oct. 22 at the Los Angeles Rams.
“I have been working my behind off these last three, four weeks,” Johnson said after Tuesday’s practice at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. “Today was one of those days to see how far I have come along, and everything looks great out there to (the training staff). I felt completely great and healthy, so I am ready for Monday when we come back to start getting back to work.”
Coach Mike Tomlin excused players after Tuesday’s practice for a five-day break, one day more than is required by the collective bargaining agreement for the bye. The team will reconvene for a “bonus” day of practice Monday.
Per IR rules, a player must be officially designated as ready to practice by the team, and once he does so will have a 21-day window during which he must be activated to the 53-man roster or be out for the season.
If Johnson is cleared to practice Monday, that would give him four practice days before the Rams game. For a five-year veteran, that would figure to be enough.
Johnson has led the Steelers in catches each of the past two seasons, totaling 284 receptions for 3,014 yards and 15 touchdowns over 49 games since 2020. Before these past four games, Johnson had missed only two games because of injury during his career.
The Steelers offense has produced four touchdowns over the four games Johnson has missed.
“He’ll have the impact that he always makes when he’s on the field,” second-year receiver Calvin Austin III said, “a guy that can get open, win one-on-one battles. And he’s the leader of our group, so (getting Johnson back) would be huge.”
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Chris Adamski is a TribLive reporter who has covered primarily the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2014 following two seasons on the Penn State football beat. A Western Pennsylvania native, he joined the Trib in 2012 after spending a decade covering Pittsburgh sports for other outlets. He can be reached at cadamski@triblive.com.
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