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Diontae Johnson wasn’t the preferred draft decide within the Steelers 2019 class. After the Steelers moved up within the draft to pick an elite athlete from a high 5 convention college at a place the followers wished a draft decide, Steeler Nation was largely excited. When the Steelers used their subsequent decide on a small, un-hyped receiver from Toledo, the response was totally different.
However followers bought on board in the course of the 2019 season, with Ben Roethlisberger out for the season, free-agent Donte Moncrief unable to catch a soccer and JuJu Smith-Schuster lacking time and taking part in harm, Johnson ended up main the group in targets, receptions and receiving touchdowns, and was essentially the most persistently productive participant on the Steelers offense.
In a flip that’s quintessential to Steelers followers, Diontae Johnson entered the 2020 season being hyped as higher than Antonio Brown, a ridiculous degree of expectations that no one resides as much as. Diontae Johnson led the Steelers in targets and receiving yards in 2020, however that quantity covers an enormous drop in effectivity. In week 7, going through the Tennessee Titans, Diontae Johnson confirmed all the vary of his play, his very strong flooring, his unbelievable potential, and the struggles that harm his manufacturing and the group.
Let’s have a look at the movie.
Star potential
Diontae Johnson has some elite abilities in his toolbox. First, he has unbelievable change of route and superb acceleration, making him a pointy route runner and a yards after catch menace.
1st quarter, 14:10. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the journeys formation.
Diontae Johnson makes this look straightforward, however he’s shifting quick when he makes the out lower. He then outruns his defender and turns upfield to get further yards as a result of he can change route whereas shifting quick.
That was a 3rd and three play, Johnson not solely picks up the primary down, he features one other 10 yards after the catch.
1st quarter, 10:44. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the display.
And for this reason you don’t give Diontae Johnson that huge of a cushion, he’s too elusive with the ball in his palms. The explanation the Titans nook is again that far is it is a third and 11, Diontae Johnson features 14 yards for an additional first down.
1st quarter, 5:45. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the display.
These two third down conversions lead on to this play, the fruits of an over 9 minute opening drive that set the early tone towards a terrific offense.
This play is slowed down, have a look at Johnson’s launch off the road. The Titans have been getting burned taking part in off Johnson, in order that they put the nook in tight protection and Johnson’s releases are a number of the finest within the NFL.
Look the place he strains up, simply exterior the numbers. After two fakes exterior he runs inside the nook, precisely the place he lined up. These two fakes let him run precisely the place he was alleged to run, he simply needed to transfer the defender out of the way in which, and he did. As precious as Johnson’s change of route is, his releases are the true power of his recreation, as a result of you possibly can’t put him in tight man protection, all it does is play to his strengths and make him extra harmful.
Additionally notice how easily he adjusts to the throw to make a troublesome catch that, if he stored operating, would have hit the again of his shin. Not a nasty throw both, Ben Roethlisberger sees that security assist coming and throws it low, the place solely Johnson can get it, trusting his receiver to make the play.
This play has famous person potential written throughout it. The discharge, the profitable of the preliminary route line, and the Wi-Fi between Johnson and Roethlisberger on the catch. You’ll be able to see why Johnson shortly turned Roethlisberger’s favourite goal.
Diontae Johnson would go to work once more proper earlier than the top of the half.
2nd quarter, 1:03. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the highest of the display.
There’s no proper reply to the query of the best way to cowl Diontae Johnson. Play off, get beat with yards after the catch, play up tight and he’s gonna beat your cornerback off the road.
2nd quarter, 0:57. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the display.
He’ll do it from either side of the sphere too. The beauty of this movie is in his rookie yr Diontae Johnson was torching tight protection, however not persistently beating off protection. The easiest way to defend him was to play off man and meet him in his path to disrupt it.
That wasn’t working in 2020.
It’s also possible to see why groups began protecting a hook defender of their defensive schemes the second half of the season. Should you add a defender to the underside hash mark proper on the 5 yard line, this route is taken away, and the nook doesn’t should crash this play, and may concentrate on staying exterior of Johnson, taking away plenty of his yards after catch menace. Diontae Johnson has the power to pressure defenses to account further personnel to defending him. That’s one space the place the comparisons to Antonio Brown have some advantage, though with Brown it was usually three defenders getting used to maintain him contained.
With this sort of ability set, why wasn’t Diontae Johnson a star receiver? I wager you possibly can guess the #1 motive.
Constant struggles
Diontae Johnson led the NFL in dropped passes, and it wasn’t a 2020 improvement. In my movie rooms on Diontae Johnson proper after he was drafted I introduced up that he had hassle with head top passes, particularly in the event that they have been a bit behind him. I lined it once more after I broke down his rookie season, and I’m fairly certain you’re conscious it was nonetheless an issue in 2020.
2nd quarter, 15:00. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the display.
Beginning the second quarter, the Titans are taking part in off of Johnson so the Steelers return to him for a straightforward 5 yard achieve with a shot at yards after the catch, however the ball bounces off Johnson’s palms. A 21 yard catch by JuJu Smith-Schuster would bail him out on third and 12, however the distinction between 2nd and 5 or much less and 2nd and 10 are important, these drops harm.
Take a greater have a look at the precise drop.
This triggered a thought in my head. I by no means performed soccer, however I performed soccer, particularly I performed goalie, and I coach goalies (albeit in little league), and whereas that doesn’t apply to soccer usually, that is one space it applies so much.
Anybody that has been taught correctly to catch a soccer or as a goalie to catch a soccer ball can acknowledge the thumbs and fingers forming a triangle. That’s the way you catch a excessive ball. however this one is thrown to Johnson’s proper, he can’t completely sq. up his palms, and that will get us into goalie land.
On catches like that your ball-side hand is your cease hand, that hand bodily stops the ball from going previous you, and the opposite hand is the management hand, aiding the cease hand to maintain the ball on that hand.
There’s a development all through the 2020 season, and whereas I haven’t dug again into the total 2019 season, it exhibits up within the movie clips the place I’ve talked about Johnson’s drops prior to now.
His cease hand is his proper hand on this go. Should you look carefully the ball hits the within of his proper hand, and bounces off, it doesn’t hit squarely in the midst of the triangle, his left hand has virtually no affect on the catch try.
Let’s have a look at an very related catch from the identical recreation.
third quarter, 12:24. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the display.
Related route, reverse facet of the sphere, so this time the throw is to his left, and he secures the ball. There’s no nice replay from the printed on this one, however I used to be in a position to get this from the TV feed.
The triangle works right here as a result of his palms are completely positioned.
Keep in mind the landing from proper earlier than halftime? It was with Diontae Johnson on the suitable facet of the sphere, heading to the center, prime candidate for a drop.
It’s laborious to see together with his white gloves and the white seats, however Johnson is ready to sq. as much as this go and catch it with a real two-hand catch. This clip additionally exhibits off how low he will get to vary route, nice manipulation of his middle of gravity to let him cease on a dime and reverse route.
His issues additionally confirmed up on down the sphere passes.
2nd quarter, 3:08. Diontae Johnson is the receiver to the underside of the display.
It is a free play, the offsides name negates this play and it doesn’t even depend as a drop for Johnson, however have a look at the ball hit his hand.
Proper hand is his cease hand, left hand ought to assist information the ball into the suitable hand after which safe it. As an alternative the ball hits Johnson’s left hand and bounces off. As an alternative of a landing, the Steelers would accept a area aim on this drive.
Late within the recreation, with a 3 level lead, the Steelers need to kill the clock and so they face a third and three.
4th quarter, 5:42. Diontae Johnson (#18) is the receiver to the left facet of the display.
It’s third down and three to go, Johnson goes to settle into the center of the sphere, however sees the opening exterior and takes it. He secures the catch on a excessive and tough catch that Johnson brings in simply. Word that his left hand is the cease hand on this go.
Additionally discover his eyes as he lands, he’s on the lookout for the primary down marker to ensure he will get previous it.
4th quarter, 4:07. Diontae Johnson is the receiver farthest to the highest of the display.
Identical drive, third and 6. The Titans have actually tight protection on Johnson, and he burns it, catching the ball and turning up area to get previous the primary down marker. One other catch the place the left hand is the cease hand.
This sort of imbalance is extra widespread than folks would possibly assume, hand-eye coordination shouldn’t be both good or unhealthy, it may be elite for some issues and fewer good in others. It stands out to me that Johnson can battle together with his hand placement when his proper hand is the cease hand, whereas he makes powerful catches look straightforward when his left hand is the cease hand.
Whenever you see movies of receivers utilizing a jug machine to catch one-handed, that is what they’re engaged on. I’m not saying Diontae Johnson doesn’t work on it, and I’m not even assured saying that hand-eye coordination is the issue. I included taht final play for an additional motive, on the finish of the play Johnson is harm.
He would miss the subsequent few performs, and return on third down. Diontae Johnson is a small man, and he will get banged up so much taking part in soccer. It occurred in faculty, the place usually he can be out for as much as a complete quarter earlier than returning, and it exhibits up within the NFL. He doesn’t miss plenty of video games, he performs harm. In soccer that could be a credit score to a participant, nevertheless it additionally means he’s not at all times wholesome when he’s on the sphere.
Over half of Diontae Johnson’s drops got here in three video games, this week 7 recreation towards Tennessee, and his terrible stretch in weeks 13 and 14 when he dropped 5 balls on 19 targets. The remainder of the season Johnson dropped 6 of his 110 targets, nonetheless not nice however it could put him effectively off the NFL leaderboard.
Possibly he let his coaching slip, possibly harm exacerbated an issue that was in any other case minor, I can’t say for certain. What I can confidently say is that when Diontae Johnson isn’t struggling to catch the ball, he’s a dynamic receiver that, whereas under no circumstances on the extent of Antonio Brown, is a possible star in his personal proper.
It’s necessary to recollect this was solely his second yr within the NFL. Development from Diontae Johnson may very well be the large story of the 2021 Steelers season. If he can depart his drops prior to now, he’ll put up nice numbers.
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