Despite Growing Pains, Diontae Johnson is the Steelers’ Unquestioned Leader on Young Offense

As has been routinely touted by Diontae Johnson detractors over the long process of ink meeting paper, Johnson led the league in drops with anywhere from fourteen to sixteen throughout 2020, depending on whom you reference. Drops, unlike catches and receiving yards, are not an official NFL statistic. Regardless, Diontae showed the mental toughness to  soldier on to the next play, and the next season.

"Even when I did drop the ball this year, I've shown that I can respond in a positive manner. And that's what I've been doing,” Johnson said of his drops at the end of the 2021 season. ”A lot of people talk about that, but they don't notice .. I feel that's the main thing they focus on is the drops.”

While he improved on catching the football in 2021, there were enough drops on Johnson’s stat sheet to warrant further cynicism, including big drops in big moments. For instance, his two touchdown effort against Baltimore in Week 13 of 2021 was blighted by a drop in the endzone that would’ve led to a more comfortable margin of victory in a pivotal late-season divisional matchup. Two more drops in the Wild Card loss to Kansas City halted drives and stunted any hopes of upsetting the Chiefs at Arrowhead.

But just how big of an issue are drops for Diontae going forward? After all, it’s one thing to say you’ve put the drops behind you. It’s another thing to actually do it.

History tells us that catching passes from a new quarterback will take time and effort to adjust to. Jerry Rice, for one, went to great lengths to ease himself into the transition from Montana to Young, knowing how stylistically different the two passers were. Count on a few of the usual drops to come in 2022, as well as some further growing pains as Diontae grows more comfortable receiving passes from presumed starter Mitchell Trubisky. It’s what makes the upcoming preseason game versus the Jacksonville Jaguars more intriguing.

Even as Trubisky was slinging passes to Gunner Olzsewski and George Pickens, Diontae was on the sidelines, cheering on his new teammates and nursing a hip injury along with fellow starter Chase Claypool, who himself was out with a dinged shoulder. And however impressive the first team offense appeared scoring on their first drive, there’s still room for growth. Their second drive stalled out, and one has to wonder how much better the offense would be with a healthy Diontae and Chase hauling in passes from Trubisky. This coming Saturday, we may see how potent the offense can be if the team’s top two receivers from 2021 return in time from injury.

The outlook is certainly positive. As much as Diontae’s detractors push the issues of dropped passes or a perceived lack of concentration, the reality is that Diontae is only entering his fourth season, and the work he’s put in so far has yielded spectacular results. With a great supporting cast around him, Diontae is in position to become the leader of a young, talented corp just as Juju Smith-Schuster was before him.

Back in 2019, few would have projected Diontae Johnson to ascend to the top of the Steelers’ wideout depth chart in just a few short years, especially in the wake of his coach Darryl Drake’s untimely passing. Many presumed his development would be stunted by the confluence of that tragedy and inconsistent quarterback play. But Diontae’s defied the odds, becoming a polished wideout whose talent and ability leads to favorable matchups against almost any defender.

Sometimes the greatest opponent you face on a football field is the one in your own head, and perhaps the issue of Diontae’s dropped passes is as mental as it is physical. If that’s the case, all it takes is time and patience. If the growth we’ve seen from year one to year three is any indication, Diontae Johnson is set for another impressive season. With a new contract and the faith of his coaches and teammates secured, Diontae’s poised to prove the doubters wrong, just as the team as a whole is flying under the radar in the face of a skeptical national media.

Can the Steelers fight their way back into contention in a tough division and win their first playoff game in six years? It will take the likes of Diontae Johnson producing even better numbers, assuming more leadership responsibilities, and battling the opponents across from him - as well as those in his own head.