When the Steelers selected Diontae Johnson with the second overall pick of the third round in the 2019 NFL Draft, they gained a sharp route-runner who had a good amount of upside. Last month he made a very good first impression at the Steelers' training camp and I highlighted it in a previous Classroom.
Johnson followed up a strong training camp with an impressive preseason debut against the Chiefs. But let's take a close look at his first NFL film to show the details of why he had success:
Johnson finished the game with three catches on five targets for 46 yards and a touchdown. Johnson could've had more touchdowns but one was called back by a controversial offensive pass interference, and on another play he was open for a touchdown but was missed by Josh Dobbs on a pass that was intercepted.
What Johnson has going for him is how quickly he gets into his routes so that he can accelerate into his second gear quicker. Watch how he gets Herb Miller to bite on his out and up route for a touchdown from Devlin Hodges. His cut to the sideline was so sharp that Miller committed to it and opened up the sideline. Johnson also finished the play with a great adjustment to an underthrown pass:
But the play I was most impressed with Johnson was the touchdown that was called back for pass interference. He matched up with D'Montre Ward and worked his way behind him despite the tight man coverage. When Johnson starts his route he does a good job to force Ward to honor the threat of an inside move, which gives Johnson more space on the sideline to work.
Once that space is opened, Johnson accelerates behind Ward to force him to look for a deep ball when Johnson works upfield. But just as Ward turns his head, Johnson stops and adjusts to the back shoulder ball:
The timing of that play was perfect, even though it was called back for offensive pass interference. But everything about Johnson's tape shows that he's got the little things in his game that most rookies still need to learn.
When James Washington was making his splash plays last preseason, he was winning jump balls but he lacked the little intricacies to get open easier. Johnson appears to have some of those tricks already in his bag, which is a great sign that maybe this receiver room is deeper than anyone imagined.
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MORE CLASSROOM
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August 15: Turn Rudolph loose vs. Chiefs
