Diontae Johnson has become the poster child for fumbling a contract year throughout the 2024 campaign. One unfortunate incident provided a window of opportunity for the wide receiver to salvage something from the wreckage.
The Carolina Panthers couldn't get Johnson out of the franchise quickly enough when things turned sour. The same applied to the Baltimore Ravens, who waived the Pro Bowl pass-catcher after he refused to enter a game and was suspended by the team.
Nobody thought Johnson would get claimed. His reputation is in tatters despite the obvious talent at his disposal. But the Houston Texans were desperate enough to put in a successful waiver claim.
This is thanks in no small part to the Texans losing Tank Dell to a serious injury. The second-year wideout suffered a dislocated kneecap and torn ACL against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 16. He's set for a considerable period on the sidelines, but Houston needed immediate help in the pursuit of making some noise in the postseason.
Former Carolina Panthers WR Diontae Johnson gets one final chance in 2024
Johnson was the beneficiary. Lady luck shone on the player when all hope seemed lost.
It's the last-chance saloon for Johnson in no uncertain terms. He lands on another postseason hopeful with an outstanding quarterback in C.J. Stroud. More petulant behavior will see teams look away entirely when free agency rolls around. This is his opportunity to silence the ever-increasing doubters.
There isn't much time for Johnson to pick things up. The Texans play on Christmas Day, which is pushing things from a time perspective. That also happens to be against the Ravens, so the headlines write themselves.
Regardless of whether Johnson features in the coming days or not is irrelevant. He must seize this moment and focus on football. The Panthers and Ravens couldn't get a tune out of the former third-round selection. Perhaps Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans has the magic formula.
The Panthers should be commended for getting anything to rid themselves of this problem. General manager Dan Morgan came in for scathing criticism for practically giving Johnson away and taking on the majority of his remaining salary for the privilege. That's not looking too bad now, especially considering how quarterback Bryce Young has flourished without having an extra distraction to cope with.
What comes next is down to Johnson. Whoever is advising the Toledo product must highlight the grave situation he's facing if things don't go well. The NFL will tolerate you so long as the production matches. That's not been the case over the last couple of seasons — something that's resulted in four teams and nothing but negative publicity.
All publicity is not good publicity in this case. Unless Johnson takes his predicament for what it is and responds accordingly, this is only going to end one way.