The Steelers are slated to trade Johnson to the Panthers in exchange for Donte Jackson and a pick swap, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Johnson had a relatively disappointing 2023 season as the No. 1 option in Pittsburgh, as he finished with a career-low 51 receptions to go along with 717 yards through the air and five touchdowns. After spending his first five seasons with the Steelers, the 27-year-old will compete with Adam Thielen for the No. 1 pass catching role in Carolina and look to build a rapport with Bryce Young.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Finds end zone in playoff loss
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Johnson secured four of seven targets for 48 yards and a touchdown in the Steelers' 31-17 wild-card loss to the Bills on Monday afternoon.
Johnson put the Steelers' first points of the afternoon on the board in the second quarter with a 10-yard scoring grab, and he finished second in receptions and third in receiving yards and targets for the team in the contest. The fifth-year pro enjoyed a reasonably productive regular season despite the Steelers' unstable quarterback situation, posting a 51-717-5 line across 13 games. Johnson impressively took 10 of those 51 grabs for 20-plus yards as well, but with a cap hit of $15.8 million for next season -- the final year of his current contract -- it remains to be seen if the 2019 third-round pick will return for a sixth season with the team.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Long touchdown catch
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Johnson recorded four receptions on five targets for 89 yards and a touchdown in Saturday's 17-10 win over the Ravens.
The Steelers' passing game was limited due to rainy conditions in Baltimore, minimizing targets and particularly downfield opportunity for pass catchers. Johnson accounted for one of the few exceptions to that with a 71-yard catch and run into the end zone on the first play from scrimmage in the fourth quarter. He closes the regular season with five touchdowns across 13 games while also averaging a career-best 14.1 yards per catch.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Loses out to Pickens again
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Johnson recorded four catches on four targets for 76 yards in Sunday's 30-23 win over Seattle.
Johnson had improved results in his second game with Mason Rudolph, primarily thanks to a 42-yard reception midway through the third quarter. However, he was outplayed by George Pickens for the second consecutive week and also saw only half the target volume of Pickens. So long as Rudolph is under center, it appears that Johnson will be the second receiver in the offense, though the improved state of the unit will still give him a chance to produce in a Week 18 matchup against the Ravens.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Minimal chemistry with Rudolph
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Johnson caught two of five targets for 15 yards in Saturday's 34-11 win over the Bengals.
In Mason Rudolph's first start of the season under center, Johnson took a back seat to George Pickens, who erupted for 195 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson had a three-game touchdown streak snapped Saturday, but he has just 250 receiving yards over his last seven games (35.7 yards per game) heading into a Week 17 road matchup with Seattle.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Sleeper WRs
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After not scoring a touchdown at all in 2022, Johnson comes into Week 16 against the Bengals with a touchdown in three games in a row. The last time he failed to score a touchdown was Week 12 at Cincinnati when Johnson had four catches for 50 yards on eight targets, but I'll still trust Johnson as a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in the rematch, even with Mason Rudolph as the new quarterback in Pittsburgh. Johnson has scored at least 12.5 PPR points in three of his past five games against Cincinnati, and the Bengals have allowed five receivers to score at least 12.8 PPR points in their past three games against Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Minnesota.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Sleepers (Start/Sit)
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After not scoring a touchdown at all in 2022, Johnson comes into Week 16 against the Bengals with a touchdown in three games in a row. The last time he failed to score a touchdown was Week 12 at Cincinnati when Johnson had four catches for 50 yards on eight targets, but I'll still trust Johnson as a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in the rematch, even with Mason Rudolph as the new quarterback in Pittsburgh. Johnson has scored at least 12.5 PPR points in three of his past five games against Cincinnati, and the Bengals have allowed five receivers to score at least 12.8 PPR points in their past three games against Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Minnesota.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Good production in loss
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Johnson recorded four catches on six targets for 62 yards and a touchdown in Saturday's 30-13 loss to the Colts.
Johnson got off to a slow start, as he wasn't targeted in the first quarter. He picked things up from there, however, as his first catch of the day went for a four-yard touchdown. Johnson went on to tally long catches of 26 and 18 yards to account for the majority of his remaining production. The Steelers' quarterback situation is quite ambiguous heading into a Week 16 matchup against the Bengals, but Johnson now has a touchdown in three straight games.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Set to face Colts
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Johnson (knee) doesn't carry an injury designation for Saturday's game against the Colts after being listed as a full practice participant Thursday, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.
Johnson was added to the Steelers' Week 15 injury report after sitting out Wednesday's practice, but evidently the wideout's knee issue wasn't a major concern, and he'll be available to catch passes from starting QB Mitch Trubisky this weekend. In Pittsburgh's 21-18 loss to the Patriots (also started by Trubisky) in Week 14, Johnson logged 48 of a possible 70 snaps on offense en route to catching three of his seven targets for a team-high 57 yards and scoring a TD in his second straight contest.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Added to injury report
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Johnson didn't practice Wednesday due to a knee injury, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.
Johnson wasn't included Tuesday on the team's initial Week 15 injury report, so his absence from Wednesday's practice is notable. What the wideout is able to do Thursday -- if anything -- thus looms large in terms of his chances of facing the Colts on Saturday. If Johnson is sidelined this weekend, Calvin Austin and Miles Boykin would be candidates to see more reps alongside starting wideouts George Pickens and Allen Robinson.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Paces pass catchers in loss
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Johnson secured three of seven targets for 57 yards and a touchdown in the Steelers' 21-18 loss to the Patriots on Thursday night.
Johnson's receiving yardage paced the Steelers on the night by a wide margin, and his targets were also a team high. The fifth-year pro's yardage tally was also his highest since Week 9, and he's now scored in consecutive contests for the first time this season after recording a 25-yard touchdown grab late in the third quarter. Johnson was the intended target on Mitch Trubisky's fourth-down heave down the left sideline with 1:55 remaining, but the speedy wideout was unable to gain enough separation to come close to making a catch. Johnson next takes aim at a more vulnerable Colts secondary in a Week 15 road matchup on Saturday afternoon, Dec. 16.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: WRs to Sit
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Johnson scored a garbage-time touchdown in Week 13 against Arizona, and that saved his Fantasy production. He finished the game with four catches for 33 yards and the touchdown on five targets, but he's now been at four catches and 50 yards or less in four games in a row. We'll see if Mitch Trubisky starting in place of Kenny Pickett (ankle) helps Johnson, but it's tough to trust any Steelers in the passing game in this matchup. Johnson is only worth starting in three-receiver PPR leagues in Week 14.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Garbage-time touchdown
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Johnson recorded four receptions on five targets for 33 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 24-10 loss to the Cardinals.
Johnson made two short catches early in the game and then completely disappeared until late in the fourth quarter. With the Steelers down three scores, he made a 26-yard catch and followed that up with a two-yard touchdown reception two plays later. Johnson has now been held under 50 receiving yards in three of his last four games and could be without Kenny Pickett (ankle) for a Week 14 matchup against New England on Thursday.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Good to go Sunday
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Johnson (illness) doesn't carry an injury designation ahead of Sunday's game against the Cardinals, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.
After not practicing Thursday due to an illness, Johnson was a full participant a day later, which sets the stage for him to face the Cardinals in Week 13. In last Sunday's 16-10 win over the Bengals, Johnson caught four of his eight targets for 50 yards, marking his second consecutive outing with eight targets, a rate of volume that gives him a degree of fantasy utility this weekend while facing 2-10 Arizona.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Sits out Thursday with illness
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Johnson didn't participate in Thursday's practice due to an illness, Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.
Johnson reportedly arrived at the Steelers' facility and planned to take the field Thursday, but the team instead advised him to head home and get some rest and recovery rather than practicing at less than 100 percent health. Assuming Johnson is able to return to practice Friday, he should still be in good shape to play this Sunday against the Cardinals.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Eight targets against Bengals
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Johnson recorded four receptions on eight targets for 50 yards in Sunday's 16-10 win over the Bengals.
Kenny Pickett threw for a season-high 268 yards, though Johnson didn't benefit from the performance. He did manage Pittsburgh's second-longest play from scrimmage on a deep 39-yard catch early in the second quarter and also narrowly missed out on a touchdown earlier in the contest. Despite glimpses of positives, Johnson now has 50 or fewer yards in three consecutive games.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Dismal performance against Browns
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Johnson recorded two receptions on eight targets for 16 yards in Sunday's 13-10 loss to the Browns.
Johnson led the Steelers in targets, narrowly out-pacing George Pickens. While no Pittsburgh pass catcher had a productive day, Johnson's stands out as particularly poor given that he had catches of only three and six yards, with his final seven yards coming on a lateral at the end of the game. Across his last two contests, he's combined to post three receptions for 33 yards and will head into another likely low-scoring divisional matchup against the Bengals in Week 12.
Johnson (thumb) was a full practice participant Thursday, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.
Johnson was listed as a non-participant Wednesday, but the wideout's return to a full session one day later sets the stage for him to remain a key target for quarterback Kenny Pickett in Sunday's game against the Browns. The wideout caught just one of his four targets for 17 yards in a 23-19 win over the Packers last weekend, but in the two contests prior, he combined for 15 catches on 23 targets for 175 yards and a touchdown.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Returns to practice
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Johnson (thumb) participated in Thursday's practice, Alan Saunders of SteelersNow.com reports.
Johnson sat out Wednesday's session, but the wideout's return to the field a day later is a positive sign with regard to his chances of playing in Sunday's game against the Browns. The Steelers' second Week 11 injury report will be released later Thursday and will reveal the extent of Johnson's practice participation.
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson: Dealing with thumb issue
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Johnson didn't practice Wednesday due to a thumb injury, Teresa Varley of the Steelers' official site reports.
Johnson played 53 snaps on offense and caught one of his four targets for 17 yards in Sunday's 23-19 win over the Packers, but he may have emerged from the game with the thumb injury. With an absence from practice to begin Week 11 prep, Johnson's status is worth monitoring ahead of Sunday's game against the Browns. If the wideout ends up out this weekend, Calvin Austin and Allen Robinson could step into expanded roles alongside George Pickens.
