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WR Diontae Johnson, Free Agent (10 Viewers)

turkishkamel said:
This terrifies me. I've got other options (Landry, R. Anderson, Fournette, Zeke), but all those targets are hard to sit
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It's a risk, but I don't think you should let it terrify you. Sure, it's the most recent game, but it's the only time it's happened so far this year. 

 
I was comfortable letting him get a game under his belt after being put on notice, but now KAllen is trending in the wrong direction and he may be forced back into lineup for me.  Lockett is my other choice and, well, he’s good for a possible stinker too

 
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Have him in over Robby Anderson & Boyd right now. Tempted to start Robby who seems to have a higher floor (& lower ceiling.)

 
Perhaps another vote of confidence here from the OC.

Brooke Pryor

⁦‪@bepryor⁩

Randy Fichtner says Diontae Johnson had a "hell of a practice yesterday." And he said he believes he'll be more consistent going forward.

And FYI, because practice was moved indoors yesterday and today, media wasn't able to watch.

12/17/20, 9:55 AM
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Trying to decide between him, Godwin, Thielen, and Aiyuk. I can start three of those, need one on the bench.

Totally unsure.

 
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Benching for Hunt. My opponent in the semis has Claypool, though, and it will be aggravating to be in the clubhouse at the end of the day today when it could be Diontae vs Chase on MNF. I don't think Diontae is a bad play this week by any means, and I am starting him on other squads, but I'm going Hunt here. They could really curb stomp the Giants today. So could the Steelers to the Bengals tomorrow, but if so I like Hunt's outlook better. Tough call. Hoping it won't matter.

 
barackdhouse said:
Benching for Hunt. My opponent in the semis has Claypool, though, and it will be aggravating to be in the clubhouse at the end of the day today when it could be Diontae vs Chase on MNF. I don't think Diontae is a bad play this week by any means, and I am starting him on other squads, but I'm going Hunt here. They could really curb stomp the Giants today. So could the Steelers to the Bengals tomorrow, but if so I like Hunt's outlook better. Tough call. Hoping it won't matter.
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These are 2 guys that I need to keep deciding between in my PPR flex. This week I picked Diontae over Hunt, thankfully it did not matter this week. Next week looks like it may come down to the same 2 guys for my flex, if things don't look better in the 2nd half I may sit Diontae. Did not think it was heading in this direction.....

 
Best player on the offense by a mile right now. Indy is a pretty good matchup too for week 16, as they play 2 deep safeties constantly. Should be a big PPR day. 

 
Diontae Johnson caught 8-of-13 targets for 58 yards and one touchdown in the Steelers' Week 15 loss to the Bengals.

It was Johnson's ninth double-digit targets game of the season, and the 13 looks easily paced the team on 38 Ben Roethlisberger throws. He also caught Big Ben's lone touchdown, a 23-yarder in the third quarter, beating the corner in the back right corner of the end zone to get the Steelers on the board after a 17-0 hole. Johnson briefly left with what looked like a foot injury but quickly returned. Johnson will be a WR2 based on volume for Week 16 against the Colts.

Dec 21, 2020, 11:46 PM ET
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barackdhouse said:
Benching for Hunt. My opponent in the semis has Claypool, though, and it will be aggravating to be in the clubhouse at the end of the day today when it could be Diontae vs Chase on MNF. I don't think Diontae is a bad play this week by any means, and I am starting him on other squads, but I'm going Hunt here. They could really curb stomp the Giants today. So could the Steelers to the Bengals tomorrow, but if so I like Hunt's outlook better. Tough call. Hoping it won't matter.
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Won by 1.1 but darned lucky to do so. Nice 0 from Ebron. 

 
This dude sucks. I wish they would target Claypool with this volume. 6.1 yards per target, Larry Fitzgerald 6.0 yards per target. Awful. May as well be high volume targeting Ryan Switzer.

 
Iceman03 said:
This dude sucks. I wish they would target Claypool with this volume. 6.1 yards per target, Larry Fitzgerald 6.0 yards per target. Awful. May as well be high volume targeting Ryan Switzer.
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I think you are complaining about the wrong guy.   Ben is the QB not pushing the ball down the field.    Ben was also way off for the entire first half.  

 
Iceman03 said:
This dude sucks. I wish they would target Claypool with this volume. 6.1 yards per target, Larry Fitzgerald 6.0 yards per target. Awful. May as well be high volume targeting Ryan Switzer.
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If Claypool got open more often they would. Johnson is the only guy getting any separation. Everything to everyone else(expect maybe the RBs) is contested. Maybe that is because Ben's accuracy(especially deep) hasn't been great lately but Johnson is their best means of moving the ball in the passing game. Even if its a little Welker-like.

 
Iceman03 said:
This dude sucks. I wish they would target Claypool with this volume. 6.1 yards per target, Larry Fitzgerald 6.0 yards per target. Awful. May as well be high volume targeting Ryan Switzer.
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Dionte is decent, not great. He fits conceptually with the design of the offense, but from a fantasy lens offers mid WR2 upside, more likely landing as a reliable WR3.

 
Ack88 said:
Dionte is decent, not great. He fits conceptually with the design of the offense, but from a fantasy lens offers mid WR2 upside, more likely landing as a reliable WR3.
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Personally I think he's on his way to being great, he's better QB play, health and doing a better job of catching the ball away.

WR2 upside implies he's not been there yet. He's currently WR20 in PPG but that does not really illustrate how good he's done in fantasy because of the 3 early game exits. He averages 18.62 in his 10 full games, that's WR1 upside and would put him as WR6 right now.

As for his game it's helped to some degree by the short passing attack but when you can get open at will, when you are hard to press and run great routes, you work for any systems conception or it's not a good system.

 
travdogg said:
If Claypool got open more often they would. Johnson is the only guy getting any separation. Everything to everyone else(expect maybe the RBs) is contested. Maybe that is because Ben's accuracy(especially deep) hasn't been great lately but Johnson is their best means of moving the ball in the passing game. Even if its a little Welker-like.
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It's hard to get open while double and triple teamed on deep passes, which was the case last night on several throws to Claypool. Claypool was open on the shorter passes, one which was almost turned into a TD after he broke a tackle. He also was open on a near TD throw in the end zone. 

 
DocHolliday said:
I think you are complaining about the wrong guy.   Ben is the QB not pushing the ball down the field.    Ben was also way off for the entire first half.  
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Ya, you’re right. Let me complain about the first ballet HOF’er and not the guy leading the league in drops and barely having a YPT greater than N’Keal Harry.

 
barackdhouse said:
Won by 1.1 but darned lucky to do so. Nice 0 from Ebron. 
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I needed 41 more yds or another TD.  That PI late in the endzone was maddening.  Also that first drive over throw that would have gone for 25+ yds (maybe even a score) if Ben hit him in stride.  Season over now.....ugh

 
Iceman03 said:
Ya, you’re right. Let me complain about the first ballet HOF’er and not the guy leading the league in drops and barely having a YPT greater than N’Keal Harry.
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Ben hasn't played anything like a HOF'er lately. Peyton Manning is arguably the best QB to ever play, and he was awful most of his last year, so was Brett Favre.  Roethlisberger is playing maybe the worst football of his career right now. 

To be honest, this last month or so, Ben has looked pretty similar to 2019 Mason Rudolph. Combine that with awful TE play, JuJu being incapable of getting open without pick plays, and Claypool having miscommunication issues, and its no wonder Johnson sees the targets he does. Ben doesn't have the accuracy to go deep right now, and Johnson(even with the drops) is the most reliable guy.

 
menobrown said:
Personally I think he's on his way to being great, he's better QB play, health and doing a better job of catching the ball away.

WR2 upside implies he's not been there yet. He's currently WR20 in PPG but that does not really illustrate how good he's done in fantasy because of the 3 early game exits. He averages 18.62 in his 10 full games, that's WR1 upside and would put him as WR6 right now.

As for his game it's helped to some degree by the short passing attack but when you can get open at will, when you are hard to press and run great routes, you work for any systems conception or it's not a good system.
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I hope you are right. He's on my primary league roster. 

I'm still scared about the drops and dings, but if all, as you alluded to above, breaks right, it is in his range of outcomes to be a WR1.

 
Iceman03 said:
Ya, you’re right. Let me complain about the first ballet HOF’er and not the guy leading the league in drops and barely having a YPT greater than N’Keal Harry.
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Johnson definitely has hands issues but someone has to stay within 5 yards of Ben and his toasted arm.    2020 Ben is nowhere close to HOF Ben.    Johnson gets open and even avoided the drops last night.   

 
Everyone is already discussing durability and mental consistency, both of which I agree are primary barriers to solidifying his value. But I also wonder (as @travdogg mentioned) about the QB situation. If Ben comes back next season then that’s another year of delaying a transition that probably needs to happen. Ben won’t be so bad that they’ll get a high pick, and not good enough to threaten the field beyond short to intermediate passing, so Johnson could be valuable in ppr based on accumulation but that seems like best case. Then we’re hoping for maybe a later pick hitting at QB or a good FA acquisition. Claypool is in the same boat. 

 
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Diontae Johnson caught 3-of-4 receptions for 96 yards in the Steelers' Week 17 loss to the Browns. 

With Mason Rudolph at the controls, one of Johnson's targets was a season-long 47-yard reception. He closes the book on the regular campaign with a sterling 88/923/7 line. It's surprising that Johnson emerged as one of the league's top compilers this season, though he enters the postseason as Pittsburgh's clear-cut No. 1 wideout. Also amongst the league's drop leaders, Johnson will need a clean performance for Pittsburgh's Browns rematch in the Wild Card Round. 

- Rotoworld
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Diontae Johnson caught 11-of-16 targets for 117 yards in Pittsburgh's Wild Card beatdown from the Browns.

Even in frustratingly leading the league in drops (10) and battling multiple injuries mid-game throughout the year, Johnson added to his resume by finishing with a team-high in targets (144) and receiving yards (923) across 15 appearances. Pittsburgh’s third-round pick last season, 2020 was already Johnson’s second time to lead his team in receiving in as many years. His opportunities through the air ranked eighth in the league, falling 22 shy of Stefon Diggs’ NFL-leading mark (166). With JuJu Smith-Schuster set to hit the market as an unrestricted free agent, Johnson is a terrific bet to again lead the Steelers in targets across from Chase Claypool in 2021. Ben Roethlisberger’s contract, which the organization could choose to part with this spring, will ultimately dictate how high Johnson should be valued in offseason fantasy drafts.

Jan 11, 2021, 12:23 AM ET
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Steelers' Diontae Johnson eyes more consistent season after leading NFL in drops

Diontae Johnson purchased a tennis ball machine in the offseason. It wasn’t so he could improve his volley or sharpen his backhand.

After leading the NFL in drops last season, the young Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver bought the machine so he could improve his concentration and hand-eye coordination.

“It’s a smaller target so you have to really focus on the ball and the object coming at you,” Johnson said this past week at the team’s minicamp. “That’s what I’ve been honing on to. Now, when I catch the football it’s easy.

“It’s always been easy to me, but it’s keeping that focus and that confidence.”

Both traits were shaken in the second half of last season and even resulted in Johnson being benched for the final 25 minutes of the first half in a December game at Buffalo. Despite improving upon his rookie numbers and leading the Steelers with 923 receiving yards on 88 catches, it was the number of drops among his team-high 144 targets that gnawed at Johnson.

Calculating a drop is an inexact exercise, which is why it is a subjective and unofficial statistic. Sports Info Solutions estimated that Johnson dropped 16 passes. Pro Football Reference pegged the number at 13. Other services lowered the number to 10.

No matter, it was too many for Johnson and the Steelers to accept.

“It was just focus,” said Johnson, who also had a team-high six drops in 2019 as a rookie. “Just taking my eye off the ball that one split second. Drop the ball right there and it goes in the back of your mind and you constantly think about stuff like that. That’s the main thing – focus and making sure you look at the ball all the way in before you run. Focus on the catch first, run second.”

Too frequently it was the other way around, particularly on the quick passes from Ben Roethlisberger. Sports Info Solutions calculated that 14 of Johnson’s 16 drops were on passes within five yards of the line of scrimmage.

The issue, however, wasn’t singular to Johnson. One stat service estimated the Steelers collectively accounted for 30 dropped passes, second-most in the NFL. Tight end Eric Ebron had seven drops, and rookie receiver Chase Claypool totaled six.

“Drops are part of the game, but obviously we had too many balls on the ground,” said Ike Hilliard, who is entering his second year as Steelers wide receivers coach. “It’s been discussed, and our group understands and knows we have to do a better job of not putting the ball on the ground. Work at it every day and be cognizant of limiting drops as we go forward into the season.”

The mistakes were magnified in a 23-17 loss to Washington, the first for the Steelers following an 11-0 start. Johnson accounted for three of the drops, prompting coach Mike Tomlin to declare: “They can catch the ball or they can get replaced by those who will catch it.”

When Johnson couldn’t corral third-down passes on the first two drives the next week against Buffalo, he found himself on the bench for the next seven possessions. In the second half, he did catch all three of his targets.

“I’ve got to catch the ball. That’s my job,” he said. “I’m a receiver and that’s what I’m paid to do. There are no excuses behind that. It all ties down to focus and knowing what I’m doing all the time. When a bad play happens, you have to move on, you can’t dwell on it.”

Johnson’s catch-and-run ability, a reason the Steelers selected him in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft, is dynamic enough that the organization was willing to keep him in the lineup. And he was a key contributor in the 48-37 wild-card playoff loss to Cleveland, catching 11 passes for 117 yards.

“Last year is last year,” Tomlin said when asked about Johnson’s past hiccups. “Everyone starts anew as far as I’m concerned.”

Hilliard sees Johnson becoming a better wide receiver because of the adversity he faced in 2020.

“It’s part of maturity and growth,” he said. “We know that our guys are not out there trying to play poorly. We’re all professionals, and we are trying to get it right. Diontae is no different. He handled it like a pro. He continues to work diligently.

“We’re going to hopefully see another giant step for him as a pro in this game, and he’s going to be a big part of what we do.”

If Johnson becomes a more consistent receiver this year, he’ll have that tennis ball machine to thank for it.

“I’ve really been believing in myself every time I step on the field,” he said. “Knowing every time the ball comes to me, I’m going to make the catch regardless of where it is at. That’s what I’ve been doing, and I’m going to keep doing it.”
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Serious question: has any NFL WR led the league in drops and then managed to solve the problem and gone on to be a great player?  

Johnson, from the looks of it, has the skills and route running to be a great one, but his hands are obviously questionable.  

 
Ghost Rider said:
Serious question: has any NFL WR led the league in drops and then managed to solve the problem and gone on to be a great player?  

Johnson, from the looks of it, has the skills and route running to be a great one, but his hands are obviously questionable.  
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Tiki Barber had major fumbling issues and corrected them. 

 
Ghost Rider said:
Serious question: has any NFL WR led the league in drops and then managed to solve the problem and gone on to be a great player?  

Johnson, from the looks of it, has the skills and route running to be a great one, but his hands are obviously questionable.  
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That is a good question and no one immediately pops up for me.

I would think there is at least one good example but Ive got nothing right now.

 
Ghost Rider said:
Serious question: has any NFL WR led the league in drops and then managed to solve the problem and gone on to be a great player?  
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Not sure about solving the problem but I'd imagine a lot of them went on to be great players.  After all you are not usually in a position to lead the league in drops if you are not in a position to get a lot of targets.  Terrell Owens off the top my head is one that comes to mind, I know he led the league in drops at least once. Unofficially.

Drops are of course not an official stat but some sites will show Lamb with just one less drop then Diontae last year and with a higher drop percentage and I don't think drops are scaring anyone off Lamb.

 
menobrown said:
Not sure about solving the problem but I'd imagine a lot of them went on to be great players.  After all you are not usually in a position to lead the league in drops if you are not in a position to get a lot of targets.  Terrell Owens off the top my head is one that comes to mind, I know he led the league in drops at least once. Unofficially.

Drops are of course not an official stat but some sites will show Lamb with just one less drop then Diontae last year and with a higher drop percentage and I don't think drops are scaring anyone off Lamb.
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I was remembering this about TO as well but the stats arent there to look it up and they are unofficial as you say so its unreliable data if I did find it.

We have better data for this now due to things like PFF charting though. Maybe there is an example out there more recent,

 
Ghost Rider said:
Serious question: has any NFL WR led the league in drops and then managed to solve the problem and gone on to be a great player?  

Johnson, from the looks of it, has the skills and route running to be a great one, but his hands are obviously questionable.  
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Not sure if this is accurate but a PFF article on the 2012 season lists the top 5 drop leaders for WRs as Wes Welker, Calvin Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Victor Cruz and Erik Decker. Solid list of players. 

 
foxco said:
Not sure if this is accurate but a PFF article on the 2012 season lists the top 5 drop leaders for WRs as Wes Welker, Calvin Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Victor Cruz and Erik Decker. Solid list of players. 
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The inclusion of drop rate there is very helpful in removing some of the bias against heavily targeted players. And also for reminding me how thoroughly I've forgotten about Donnie Avery.

 
Ghost Rider said:
Serious question: has any NFL WR led the league in drops and then managed to solve the problem and gone on to be a great player?  

Johnson, from the looks of it, has the skills and route running to be a great one, but his hands are obviously questionable.  
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Not sure if he led the league in drops, but I know Davante Adams had issues early on.  From ESPN 2015 Blog 

Adams has six drops to his 23 catches
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Last year (according to pro football reference) he had 1 drop and 115 receptions.

 
BobbyLayne said:
Advanced receiving
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Thank you. Learn something new every day.

I still don't see a way to look at all players in a list that would include drops. I can find that for the team data but not a complete list of player data.

I have Stathead too and so I tried to search for drops that way but it isn't a choice.

If you know of some trick to get this data from PFR without having to look at each players advanced stats individually let me know.

 
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