Diontae Johnson is a #1 Receiver

Pickens does need more targets, but part of that is on him. He has to run better routes and get open more. Part of the reason Johnson gets so many targets is that he is much better at getting open than anybody else on the team.

 

he will never run routes like DJ, that is ALL that DJ can do great. Pickens can catch anything thrown in a 10 mi radius to him. THROW IT TO HIM, open or not, throw it to the open shoulder, throw it high (er). Teach him to knock it down if he won't catch it. throw him the ball, OFTEN. in the RZ, throw the old alley-opp to him. He will catch 7/10 of them, IF PICKETT throws it correctly. He should be an unstoppable force. MAKE TEAM double and triple him, that will open up other stuff.

 

bottom line is your number 1 receiver has to get the ball in the end zone. at least once a season.

 

remember how close he was in the last game, didn't he get to the 4 yd line or something?

Poor Diontae....

 

So your solution is to constantly force the ball to a covered receiver? Um, okay....

 

not exactly, but throw it more, that is for sure.

 

Blast I think his route running which as you pointed out is a great strength was less an issue as the scheme and game plan over utilizing him. By all means if he gets clear then hit the guy but we began to see where teams were attacking him with bracketed coverage because he was the top option. As soon as Canada started calling plays that got Pickens involved and Muth as well as Warren and Harris on the swing routes you saw teams backing off shading coverage to DJ's side. I'm really hoping that in year 2 they allow Pickett to read those coverages and see guys playing 8 yards off of DJ and have him call a quick hit to him as well as hitting him inscribe instead of the catch loop backwards run east and west and turn a 10 yard play into a 4 yarder. But I'm hopelessly optimistic so who knows.

 

2 yard line I believe or there about

And when he saw a defender he quit trying to hit the end zone slowed up and started to dance

Hines Ward would have put his shoulder down and drove for the score

Diontae is a pretty boy not a driven man

 

I agree with the Hines Ward part for sure.

 

I agree, but....they should have waited too pay Him, and He drops the easy ones....that's why they are so magnified......also that running backwards almost every catch $Hite just has to stop.

 

Folks, we have two receivers on our roster capable of catching.
90 balls a season, true they must get into the endzone more. I think
route design has alot to do with not getting into endzone. Why can't our receivers run routes to open areas?
KP can get them the ball but their always seem to be in contested situations? Why? This is why I wanted a change in OC.

 

He is not a #1 in my book ..A true #1 is either a bigger stronger type with very strong hands who can high point balls and beat double coverage on a regular basis. DJ is more og the get open in a hurry guy , but he lacks strong hands and does not run like a RB in the open field . I look at him more as a #2 or # 3 because of the skills he is missing ..

Route running I give him a A .. Catching a C .. Running after the catch a D.. Can he improve of course , but he has a long way to go ..

 

He has actually gotten worse running after the catch. He used to be more decisive and aggressive. He still shows it sometimes, but not often enough.

Of course, Ward was more physical than most receivers. The guy played a good bit of running back in college, so it's no surprise.

 

On the other hand

Maybe the defender doesn't give a damn Johnson juked because he'll drop it or catch and run right back towards him.

 

https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=8396...jZS5jb20vcGxheWVycy9KL0pvaG5EaTAxLmh0bQ&ntb=1



2nd highest amount of drops in his 4 years. 7. add these to 1 fumble and the runs backwards not gaining first down yardage when he first had it and it becomes a problem. no TD's on the season either. this was after a big raise.

 

The lack of TD's IMO is indicative of his weaknesses as a WR. He's not good breaking tackles and getting up field after the catch. He does not have break away speed, His hands are suspect and does not catch contested balls well. WR's that score TD's usually excel at these aspects of the game. So he's good for 10 yard routes if the ball hits him in the body. He's often catching balls standing still in zone coverages - which is fine, he can find holes in zones but his quickness is not good. AB destroyed defenses all of the time doing this. Dude is avg to above avg at most aspects of being a WR. Sure he can catch a lot of balls but with that you would totally expect splash plays. He's a boring WR that's nice to have. So pay him the avg of an NFL WR with his service time. He also has little to no upside at this point of his career.

 

it's not just about the drops. The whole game doesn't add up to being a number one. I like dj but we need a coach to help this kid advance. Not an OC but we need to look at position coach.

 

Somehow DJ makes me think of Captain Wrongway Peechfuzz from Rocky and Bullwinkle

 

This has been brought up before but in fact the stats don't support your statement. He had 6 or 7 drops all year .. If memory serves Kelce had 7 . Some of the top wide receivers in the game had an inordinate amount of drops.

 

So

DJ is a number 1 pass catching circle jerking route running loser we should teade

 

Get Kenny his guy forget dj