The Pittsburgh Steelers had a busy offseason. They carefully selected and released players to fix or improve upon weak spots that were exposed last season. One of the unfortunate side effects of bringing on new players or releasing existing ones is that the dynamic of the team changes. While you hope that is good for the team as a whole, it can spell doom for a player whose role changes or whose playing time decreases.
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Steelers QB Mitch Trubisky pilots offense in second half vs. Tampa Bay.
As we head into the 2023 season and take a look at the players that were added to the roster via the NFL Draft and free agency, conversations keep happening about who will be the odd man out. Some of these positional battles are very obvious - offensive tackle for example. The discussion of whether Dan Moore Jr. will win the starting job over rookie first-round draft pick Broderick Jones is a common one. But Moore/Jones may not be the only players facing losing playing time, there are other less obvious, but just as important battles that are going to be waged.
Which Steelers Player Is Facing The Biggest Loss Of Playing Time In 2023?
Former Steelers linebacker Arthur Moats hosts a podcast, The Arthur Moats Experience, and recently he had fellow former teammate Terence Garvin on the show as a guest. One of the topics that Moats and Garvin discussed was which player will see their role diminished in the upcoming season.
"I say Diontae [Johnson] because if Pickens gonna go where I think he's gonna go, it's just gonna cut down his targets," said Moats.
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Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth (88) reacts with wide receiver Diontae Johnson (18).
Diontae Johnson is entering his fifth season in the league, all of which have been with the Steelers, who selected him in the third round in 2019. The selection used to take Johnson came as a part of the Antonio Brown to then-Oakland Raiders trade. Johnson is not on the same level as a Brown, but he has been a solid addition to the roster. He's made the Pro Bowl once, having an 100-plus reception/1,000-plus yard season in 2021.
But Johnson is a bit of a conundrum. While he has a decent resume, he has also had his share of struggles. He had some issues with dropped balls, false starts, and last season, he couldn't find the end zone (except for one two-point conversion). It is easy to place the majority of the blame for the touchdowns on offensive coordinator Matt Canada, but he can't take the blame for all of it.
It would also be remiss to not note the amount of time and attention Johnson put into trying to fix some of his struggles. When he was dropping balls, he could be found on the field practicing catching tennis balls endlessly trying to improve his hand skills. He also still led the team in both receptions and yards in 2022.
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Steelers' Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell helped Pittsburgh's offense terrorize opponents for a stretch of years during the 2010's.
George Pickens arrived on the scene in Pittsburgh last year and everyone is expecting to see the young player have an increased role in 2023. With the Steelers working on their run game, those passes have to be taken away from someone and the obvious answer is Johnson.
Pickens and quarterback Kenny Pickett entered the league together in 2022. Since Pickett wasn't expected to be the starting quarterback, that job was to go to Mitch Trubisky, he did not take first-team reps in preseason. Instead, he spent most of his time working out with Pickens, who was also not the starting wide receiver.
He saw more "go routes" last season than any other NFL receiver last season. Pickens proved that he is more than capable of making contested catches. He wowed fans with his ability to leap into the air and contort his body, snatching the ball out of the hands of the helpless defenders, all while keeping his toes in bounds. Garvin says that he feels that Pickens might be the major reason for Johnson's downfall, but not his only reason.
"I think Diontae's contract hurts him a little bit too," remarks Garvin. "I think we're having all these weapons, I think you start to be like, 'It's a lot of money.' Then we could justify it."
Twitter: Matt Freed/@mattfreedpghpg)
Steelers receiver George Pickens makes an acrobatic catch over Levi Wallace in camp in Latrobe, PA.
Moats agrees with Garvin and says that while Johnson is still having big seasons, it is hard to justify letting him go, but with Pickens coming along, it gets easier. He adds that the Steelers are full of receiving weapons and they can just say "see ya, DJ."
What do you think? Do you think this will be Johnson's last season with the Steelers? Click to comment below!
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