

The Facts: Johnson has been holding in at the team’s training camp because he’s looking for a contract extension before playing out the final year of his rookie deal. Two other wideouts drafted in 2019 who were doing the same thing — DK Metcalf and Deebo Samuel — landed deals recently and A.J. Brown, Terry McLaurin, and Hunter Renfrow have also signed extensions this offseason. On Tuesday, Steelers General Manager Omar Khan said “it adds to the conversation” that he’s having with Johnson’s representatives about a new pact while adding that the team hopes to find a solution that works for everyone.
Diehards Line:
Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports the sides are so far apart that “the plausibility of getting a deal done before the Sept. 11 season opener in Cincinnati is slim.” Still, the ZSteelers are optimistic. “The conversations we have with Diontae and his representatives are going to stay between us,” Khan said, via Mark Kaboly of TheAthletic.com. “We don’t discuss that publicly, but we have been in conversations. We want Diontae and we are excited to have Diontae a part of this team. We hope he is going to be a Steeler for a long time. ...” That hope will only take things so far if the Steelers and Johnson have different views about how he fits into the group of wideouts who have already signed their second NFL contracts. It appears the two sides are still working that out right now.