Former Steelers CB Gives High Praise For Dynamic Ex-Teammate Diontae Johnson For 2023

The Pittsburgh Steelers are used to former players singing the praises of other Steelers players. Even the players that leave on "bad" terms, the great words keep coming through to the team. While Steven Nelson did have problems with the team during the 2021 offseason, he still has plenty of love to show for his former teammate in a Twitter post that quote-tweeted one of SteelerNation's own members, Matthew Luciow. Even while Nelson plays for a team that will face the Steelers in the upcoming season, he is still excited to watch his former teammate thrive. 

Nelson got a hold of the social media post where Diontae Johnson was doing a rigorous drill involving speed, agility, and the ability to stop on a dime. Despite Johnson's severe lack of scoring plays in 2022, Nelson seems to think that he will be in for a great season, no matter who will be guarding him. Those are some encouraging words from a player who watched him play for the first two seasons of his career. 

Nelson and Johnson were teammates for the 2019 and 2020 seasons. He has seen what Johnson is capable of firsthand. He has seen the 3rd-and-20 play where Johnson went full steam ahead after a quick pass and juked a defender in the open field on a 45-yard touchdown reception with about 43 yards after catch. Nelson likely had to guard Johnson during training camp as well. He will likely see Johnson play at least one more time in his career.

Nelson is probably not ready for Week 4 of the 2023 season. His team, the Houston Texans, will be matching up against Johnson and the Steelers. Despite Nelson not being the top cornerback on his team, he will most likely still see some playing time in rotation, which would mean he might have to face off against Johnson. Barbeque chicken is very popular in the south where Nelson plays, but it's safe to say that Nelson would not want to be cooked like barbeque chicken. 

Diontae Johnson Is Not The Only Steelers' Threat

The real question for Nelson is if he would rather be cooked like barbeque chicken, or mossed on by a second-year receiver who's poised for a breakout season. Johnson would cook him with speed, while George Pickens would just catch anything that would go his direction. Unfortunately for Nelson, he is not the same shutdown cornerback that he was in 2019, so it's highly unlikely that he can bat away anything that goes in Pickens' direction.

Despite not hauling in a touchdown in 2022, Johnson still had 86 receptions for a total of 882 yards throughout the season. He was also a key contributor to the longest drive of the season with some clutch receptions. There are still plenty of reasons to believe that Johnson will have a better season in 2023, especially if Matt Canada allows Kenny Pickett to have more control at the line of scrimmage. 

Whether or not you believe the Johnson hype or not, it is still great to see Johnson's former teammate showing that much confidence in the fifth-year receiver. Even if Pickens ends up taking up more targets, Johnson can still be an effective role-player that cornerbacks like Nelson will not want to face. As long as he can regularly catch the ball and not have the few-week span of butterfingers that he tends to have, he will be a big part of the Steelers' offense and help cook some barbeque chicken for his team.

What do you think about what Steven Nelson said about Diontae Johnson, as well as how you think Nelson would match up against the Steelers? Let us know down in the comments below.

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