There was so much to be excited about from last week’s win over the Cincinnati Bengals. But one thing the Pittsburgh Steelers shouldn’t be excited about was the effort by wide receiver Diontae Johnson on the fumble by running back Jaylen Warren early in the game.
Johnson gave up on the play before it even started and even let the fumble bounce right past him without making any effort to get the football before Bengals cornerback DJ Turner scooped it up. Even after that, Johnson makes no effort to run down the play. He just strolls to the sidelines while his teammates continue to hustle.
Former Steelers safety Ryan Clark was on ESPN’s First Take and he did not hold back in his criticism of Johnson on that play.
“First off you see the effort on the block,” Clark said. “He has his hands on DJ Turner… Oh no he doesn’t. Watch Diontae Johnson. He’s not even looking! Look! Go make a play. Go after the guy!”
“What Diontae Johnson showed me was that he was pouting y’all,” Clark continued. “He was pouting because he thought he had a touchdown. Then, when he didn’t, he decided blocking this guy or running him off was not what I should do.”
Johnson was very fortunate that the fumble didn’t turn into points for the Bengals or we are having a completely different conversation. It was an ugly, lazy play from a guy who seems to be struggling with being part of the team right now. With the offense turning the corner the last thing it needs is dissention among the ranks.
