Pros and cons of Steelers possibly extending WR Diontae Johnson

Cons of Steelers extending Diontae Johnson

Just like there are pros for extending Diontae Johnson, there are an equal number of cons. For starters, the money they would be forced to tie into him would be significant. Because the wide receiver market got reset with some iffy deals this offseason, the Steelers would be forced to follow suit with Johnson — instantly making him one of the highest-paid players on the team.

There’s also no guarantee that Johnson is going to continue to progress or that he will have a better season than the one we saw last year. While he became more consistent in 2021, Johnson has a lengthy history of drops and fumbles, and it stands to reason that these issues could return at any time.

In addition, Johnson might be lacking the high-end traits to be a true WR1 in the NFL. While he has drawn the Antonio Brown comparison at times in the past, he’s no AB on the field. Johnson has a good blend of quickness, route-running, and ability after the catch, but he’s not necessarily elite at anything.

Because of this, the Steelers could be paying top-dollar to a WR2, by NFL standards. We could find that — in a year or two — Johnson just isn’t worth the money he’s getting. But after the team locks themselves into some hefty guarantees, it will be harder to move on or even find talent at other positions in free agency in the future because of the money tied to him.

I ultimately believe that the Steelers will pay Johnson (out of necessity, if nothing else), but fans are split on whether or not this will prove to be the right decision. If they do extend him, let’s hope that he continues to improve at a fast rate.