Normally, when a player is selected during the first two days of the NFL Draft, it provides job security for at least a couple of years. The Pittsburgh Steelers went against that train of thought after moving Kaleb Johnson in a trade just before final roster cuts were announced. The second-year running back was their third-round pick in 2025, and his time in Pittsburgh was always a confusing fit.
For one reason or another, Johnson never mixed with the Steelers, and the hope for him will be having more success with the Green Bay Packers. Moving on from a third-round pick this quickly is almost unheard of. With that said, Johnson just didn't have what the Steelers thought they were getting when they drafted him.
It shows poor talent evaluation on their part.
At the end of the day, this once highly praised prospect for Pittsburgh might be one of the worst draft busts in recent franchise history.
It's very uncommon for an organization like them to move on from a high draft choice this quickly. With a new coaching staff in the fold this year, that could've sped up the evaluation process on Johnson. Either way, he now has a new home after being traded for pennies on the dollar.
Pittsburgh Steelers' Kaleb Johnson trade shows he was set to be a draft bust from the start
Trade Grade for the Pittsburgh Steelers: D
When you watched the Steelers during the preseason, it was clear that Kaleb Johnson was fighting for his roster spot. The third-round pick showed glimpses of his burst from his collegiate career, but nothing that impressed those watching. His failure to be a dynamic runner in the NFL pushed him further down the depth chart, but his failure to develop an all-around game is what doomed Johnson.
He played plenty of snaps during the preseason, which led to many reading the writing on the wall. Despite him clearly sitting on the roster bubble, few thought the Steelers would actually move on from the player that quickly. This is an unusual occurrence, but then again, these are unusual times for the franchise.
It will be interesting if it was more of the players fault, or the teams as time moves forward.
Now that Johnson joins the Packers following the trade, he has a shot to make good on his draft selection. If the Steelers were the problem, you should see Johnson succeed with a potentially large role in the Packers' offense. Any sort of failure could expose the running back as just being too overhyped in the draft process. Maybe he just wasn't as good as many evaluators thought he was.
At the end of the day, this trade is just ugly for the Steelers.
No matter how you shake it, they gave up a former third-round pick going into his second season for a future sixth-rounder. That is selling a high investment in a hurry to cut your losses. Making this trade shows that Pittsburgh is openly admitting to their mistake.
If Kaleb Johnson turns things around with the Packers, this deal could look even worse.
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