Ranking The 2019 NFL Draft WR Class In Year Three: Who Tops The List?
4. Diontae Johnson, Pittsburgh Steelers
Perhaps the best true route runner from the 2019 NFL Draft, Diontae Johnson has continued the trend of successful Steelers receivers, no matter where they’re drafted. Johnson entered early as a junior out of Toledo, and his sophomore production (1,278 yards, 13 TDs) spoke for itself despite a down junior campaign.
The NFL production isn’t maybe where Steelers fans want it to be, as he’s yet to cross the arbitrary “you’re good now” 1,000-yard threshold, but the Steelers have consistently had a deep room the last several seasons. There’s an argument to be made that Johnson has been the best of them this whole time.
Johnson is technically savvy when discussing his game, especially in his first couple seasons. He always made things difficult for corners in press or press-bail coverage, varying up his release, and more importantly, his tempo off the line of scrimmage. Johnson made it hard to key in on his tendencies, speaking to his advanced skill set. He attacks blind spots well and sink his hips to change direction with little wasted motion and steps. Johnson wins in the quick game as a slant maestro among other routes, and that’s helped a Steelers offense that’s struggled to throw it deep and give enough time to do so.
Drops have really plagued Johnson’s young career. On 144 targets in 2020, Johnson led the league with a concerning 14 drops. Most of these were the result of rough hand positioning, with some resulting in a quick look up the field.
2021 has been a different story. Entering December, Johnson has zero drops on 109 targets and the massive improvement hasn’t gone unnoticed. He’s also become a much better deep ball receiver and vastly improved with the ball in the air. His double moves are showing up more, and he’s slowing his stride and maintaining great position when tracking the football. He’s making subtle usage of late hands to generate a little more separation as well. His field vision is improving, and while his speed isn’t top tier, he’s making plays after the catch.
The improvement is impressive, and it’s vaulted Diontae Johnson in these rankings. The 2019 NFL Draft pick has become the Steelers WR1.