Kid shows glimpses of how good he can be since preseason and is doing okay as a starter so far. Is he really going to be above average for a rookie come mid-season or take a year or two more ?
Kid shows glimpses of how good he can be since preseason and is doing okay as a starter so far. Is he really going to be above average for a rookie come mid-season or take a year or two more ?
It's going to all depend on how quickly he can learn to be a high end NFL route runner. If/when he does that, he has the ceiling of being an "I'm always open just throw me the damn ball" guy.Originally Posted by JimHarbaugh'ssoakedtissue
No idea if/when that takes off.
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Wasn't he drafted because he look like the best route runner of the draft ? I think you are kinda right but more of just a confidence level over all of his game. Hope he keeps gaining confidence each week.
Here’s an interesting stat:
Diontae Johnson leads the NFL in “yards of separation” (per target): 2.81 yards.
SUMMATION:
He can routinely get open on his own.
I think hes a lot better than people think. Once he figures out the nuances of the NFL he will be a beast.
I think that was the idea, that he was a really good route runner coming out of college. I would still suspect that even a great route runner in the MAC has some refinements and improvements to make upon encountering NFL competition.
That is an interesting stat. DJ certainly looks like the best Steelers WR at defeating attempts to slow him up at his release off the line. Plays faster than his timed speed in my opinion.
I think a lot of it depends on Mason Rudolph’s development. Will he trust DJ and consider him open the way Ben did with AB? Or will he hesitate and count on him being SUPER open like in the Bengals game?
It’s too bad Ben is hurt. I think Ben would really help a guy like DJ become a super star quickly the way he did with AB.
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I'd like to see him take over the PR duties. He averaged 18.5 last year in college. He plays way faster than 4.53.
He definitely looks fast, though I think he's more quick than fast. Sort of like AB, he's not really a high top-end speed guy, but really quick which is sometimes more important especially to get early separation.
Lewis Riddick thought he was the best route runner in the draft. Lance Zeirline scouted him as being "twitchy" and having basketball quickness to elude the jam, but somewhat raw getting in and out of his breaks and "focus drops being an issue".
Johnson has quickness to get open, but doesn't have the best hands to make contested catches consistently, so I think the few drops he has had, either come off as lack of confidence or contribute to diminished confidence. That unnecessary jumping to get that ball on the TD catch, shows hints of not being confident to just run under that ball, but rather some fear of dropping the wide open pass, IMO.
It’s funny that Washington did that exact same thing last year: unnecessarily jumping to catch a ball when he could have caught it in stride.
Before Washington did it last year, and then Ben kind of explaining it, it never would have occurred to me that it’s a youth/confidence thing. Intuitively I’d have thought that jumping would make a catch more difficult. But now I kind of understand it.
Fortunately it made absolutely no difference in the DJ catch as he was able to maintain his balance and keep running. So I’m glad he got that jump out of his system. Hopefully it was a one time mistake.
I'm encouraged with Johnson's play. I did not think he had the type of speed to go deep. The guy cuts well and round crips routes. He's got good hands.
On the minus side, he's not very physical, has fumbled, and could lack some toughness. I still view him as a good #3WR, but for now he's the #2 WR.
The Emmanuel Sanders comp is looking correct with DJ.
1. Graham Barton, C, Duke 2. Ricky Pearsall, WR, Florida 3. Maason Smith, DT, LSU 3. Max Melton, CB, Rutgers 4. Blake Fisher, OT, Notre Dame 6. Tommy Eichenberg, ILB, Ohio State 6. MJ Devonshire, CB, Pittsburgh
When he was drafted, I mentioned his drop rate. To paraphrase that post...
Diontae is going to get open a helluva lot... wide open. But, he will also drop about one in every eleven targets.
SUMMATION:
I’ll take the occasional drop, since he’ll be so open on a ton of other plays. Akin to how I was fine with Lloyd/Greene getting the occasional “encroachment” penalty.
He'll drop one in 11 while Moncrief will catch one in 11
That reminds me of an old Johnny Carson joke, where he’d play the Great Carnac and he’d predict the answer before opening an envelope, revealing a question.He'll drop one in 11 while Moncrief will catch one in 11
His answer was: Catch 22.
And the question was: what would the Dodgers do if you hit them 100 fly balls?
Just swap out Dodgers for Moncrief and the joke holds up.
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