Diontae Johnson is off to a rough start in Week 12’s Steelers-Bengals game. Not only did Johnson fail to secure a touchdown catch–though it was later determined that the play should have been ruled in Pittsburgh’s favor–but he also gave less than zero effort on a play where the Steelers fumbled the ball. Johnson simply watched the ball bounce right in front of him and made no attempt to recover it.
Yeah… Diontae Johnson has completely given up with the Steelers. pic.twitter.com/64qxh3tKdz
— Brandon Little (@BrandonLittleBL) November 26, 2023
Making matters even worse for Johnson is the fact that his Steelers teammates all hustled and didn’t give up on the play while he casually walked off the field as if nothing was happening. Steelers fans let him have it on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Diontae Johnson walking when there’s a live ball on the field is just the icing on the cake 😂😂😂
— PickensBurgh🫡 (Tino) (@PickensBurgh) November 26, 2023
pic.twitter.com/qo4wwrALnV
Wow and that’s with a new coordinator 😂
— MoneyTeamFTW (@MoneyTeamFTWin) November 26, 2023
Even BEFORE the fumble happened… zero effort
— Troy (@Troy_Malekith) November 26, 2023
Frustration is clearly the common emotion directed at Johnson. But this Steelers fan got creative, referencing a play earlier in the game where Johnson ran backward after catching a screen pass.
When we need him to run backwards, he never does……..
— nameless gray face (@pittmckee) November 26, 2023
Johnson’s effort–or lack thereof–looks even worse after a report surfaced Saturday stating that Johnson and Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick got into a heated altercation in the locker room. He’ll need to step up and make some big plays to help Steelers fans–and the media–forget about this bad sequence.