Diontae Johnson made a quick rise in the Steelers' offense this season recording 59 catches on 92 targets for 680 yards and five touchdowns.
His raw skills in route running and creating separation have been impressive and made him an exciting young player for the offense. But Johnson can't settle for that, and he can best improve his value to the team with time and learning the playbook.
According to Next Gen NFL Stats, Johnson averaged 3.6 yards of separation per target. That was the best in the NFL among wide receivers and came as a result from Johnson's quick footwork and ahead of schedule familiarity with different routes.
His knowledge of how to work defenders off their assignments adds his athleticism. Watch how he takes on Marlon Humphrey in the press from the slot. Humphrey doesn't jam Johnson and once that release is clean, Johnson uses two jab steps to back off Humphrey before breaking over the middle of the field for an easy conversion by Devlin Hodges on third down:
But Johnson faces a challenge that all young receivers must overcome in knowing an NFL playbook. Receivers may know how to run certain routes and basic elements of playing the position, but NFL playbooks have various spots for receivers to line up and run routes against different looks.
It takes longer than just a season for receivers to fully grasp each receiver position in all the different formations. Their development often starts with knowing specific spots to in limited formations to line up, then learning how to run their routes out of those spots.
Out of Johnson's seven targets against the Ravens, five of them came from lining up tight to the formation to the right of the line. The two other targets came from a similar spot to the left of the Steelers' line, indicating plenty of involvement of Johnson in the slot.
It worked well as he was beating the Ravens' top cornerbacks in those spots. Here he beats Marcus Peters on a crossing pattern for 21 yards. Watch how he works to cross Peters' face even with Matthew Judon getting in his way. Once he breaks free, Hodges finds Johnson for a big play:
Johnson's proficient routes make him dangerous, but that can get much scarier when the Steelers feel comfortable lining him up in any spot of every formation. That's the same growth JuJu Smith-Schuster had to go through after spending most of his time in the slot as a rookie until he learned enough of the offense to be lined up anywhere.
Johnson is ahead of where Smith-Schuster is in the sharpness of his footwork and route running, but he still has other elements of his game to work through, including the understanding of the playbook and how to take on different coverage challenges.
How he takes on those challenges will impact the Steelers' decisions about which young receivers they make a priority to keep in the coming years.
MORE CLASSROOM
Jan. 2: Nelson fits like a glove
Dec. 31: Bud wasn’t just on some tear
Dec. 30: Snell’s case for 2020
Dec. 27: Finding Duck’s balance
