"One-And-Done Club": Steelers' 2025 3rd-Round Pick Facing Nightmare Sophomore Scenario

Pittsburgh Steelers General Manager Omar Khan has done a very nice job of rebuilding the roster since taking over the front office in May of 2022. One of the more impressive stretches of his tenure came in the 2023 offseason. That year's draft class has already earned three extensions, while Joey Porter Jr. looks to be the fourth and final one to get a payday. Andy Weidl deserves a lot of credit too, as he works behind the scenes to evaluate a lot of the talent that is coming out of college. Overall, the duo has done a very nice job since pairing up in the Steel City.

It is impossible to have a 100-percent success rate on all draft picks, however. There have been some head-scratchers, and also some players who projected to be really good for the franchise who simply did not work out. These guys end up getting put in a spotlight that leads to criticism of the decision-makers at the top; however, it's not always Khan's fault.

In September of 2025, the Steelers were taking on the future Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks at Acrisure Stadium. In a contest that was relatively close, the visitors kicked off to Pittsburgh with a key drive on the horizon. Then-rookie Kaleb Johnson went to go after the football, but let it get past him, which led to it landing in the end zone.

Instead of running after it to try and fix his mistake, the running back panicked and did absolutely nothing. This led to a Seahawks recovery and touchdown, and completely changed the trajectory of the matchup.

Not only did Johnson not get too many opportunities for the rest of the year on special teams, but he was buried on the depth chart because of Kenneth Gainwell's emergence. The same can be said in 2026 regarding Rico Dowdle's arrival, so the second-year playmaker is in a really tough spot, especially with Lew Nichols, Travis Homer and Eli Heidenreich around as well.

On Wednesday morning, team beat writer Ray Fittipaldo released his first 53-man roster prediction for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He believes Homer's special teams capabilities will earn him the nod over Johnson, and sent the former third-round pick packing.

"Could the Steelers cut a third-round pick after one season for a second time in five years? Kaleb Johnson could join Kendrick Green in the one-and-done club," Fittipaldo wrote.

It's fair to note that Kendrick Green was not necessarily one-and-done. He was inactive on game days for pretty much his entire second season, and then was traded to the Houston Texans in 2023.

The quick fall for Johnson has certainly been unfortunate. He was once viewed as a powerful back and incredible prospect. The issue with arriving in the NFL is that everyone is talented and the work gets harder, not easier. While he may be doing everything in his power to earn reps, Johnson barely played in the Steelers' first preseason contest, getting just two carries.

It is not going to be an easy couple of weeks for the ball carrier. He does not have that much time to prove that he belongs on the initial 53-man roster, so the final two exhibition contests mean absolutely everything to him. However, the coaching staff could have already made up its mind pending a drastic change of heart.

Steelers Can Still Potentially Keep Johnson Around

Pittsburgh could theoretically cut Johnson and hope he isn't picked up by another organization. This would lead to a potential practice squad stint and future elevation if there were an injury or two that ended up occurring to the individuals ahead of him. That's not exactly what he probably had envisioned when he was drafted a year ago, but his career is quickly turning upside down in front of everyone's eyes.

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