Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Chase Claypool expects Diontae Johnson to take on the Bengals in Week 1. However, if Johnson can’t, Claypool believes the Steelers’ wide receiving team will be fine.
“We’re deep, so in case one of us goes down we’ll be able to keep rolling,” Claypool said, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.
Johnson is nursing left shoulder injury that he suffered in his final pre-season game against the Detroit Lions. The Steelers restricted Johnson’s participation on Wednesday.
Johnson told NFL Network’s Mike Giardi, “It’s annoying. I tried to do all I could (at practice on Wednesday)”.
Replace Johnson, one expand top 10 in 2021, could be a problem. If he can’t go, Claypool’s role will expand.
Claypool showed promise in his first two seasons, but questions about his focus and maturity have arisen. In one Week 15 loss against the Vikings, he celebrates the first goal, costing the team precious seconds late in the game.
Sports Illustrated’s Albret Breer reported Head coach Mike Tomlin quickly benched Claypool in the first quarter of that game.
“It couldn’t come fast enough for him. It just couldn’t come fast enough for us,” Tomlin told NFL Network’s Andrew Sicilano, when commenting on Claypool’s maturity.
In the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, the Steelers drafted broad recipient George Pickens, who excelled in pre-season. If Claypool doesn’t play well, he could be overshadowed by Pickens.
