Kaleb Johnson just admitted what Steelers fans have known for almost a year regarding the end of his career in Pittsburgh
Kaleb Johnson was traded over the weekend to the Green Bay Packers, just a year into his tenure with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He finally opened up about why it happened and how he’s moving forward in Green Bay.
Kaleb Johnson has already moved on. The former Pittsburgh Steelers third-round pick, now a member of the Green Bay Packers, spoke to the media ahead of Week 1 and confirmed what most of us already suspected: the botched kickoff return against the Seattle Seahawks sealed his fate in Pittsburgh.
When asked what went wrong with the Steelers, Johnson was candid.
“At first it was my mental errors that killed it for me. The kickoff killed me. I give all the respect to the Steelers for giving me a chance, but now it’s go Pack go,” Johnson said.
The video of his comments tells an even deeper story. Johnson looked almost distraught revisiting the situation, as if the memory itself still haunts him. And honestly, it should. That moment against the Seahawks, when he botched a kickoff return that essentially ended the game, pretty much ended his Steelers career on the spot.
The writing was on the wall for Johnson in Pittsburgh
Let’s be honest. Leading up to that moment, Johnson hadn’t exactly put together a strong case for himself. He wasn’t good in training camp. He wasn’t good in the preseason. The Steelers tried to get him involved with kickoff returns, and when he fumbled that opportunity, all it took was one look from coach Mike Tomlin. Johnson went straight into the doghouse for the rest of the season, inactive for the majority of games.
A lot of people, myself included, thought a new staff, a new regime, and a new scheme might help Johnson turn things around. It did the opposite. By the end of his time in Pittsburgh, Johnson was playing five snaps in preseason games. He was the sixth running back in drills at practice. If he wasn’t going to be released, he was going to be traded.
Steelers recoup draft value, but questions linger about Omar Khan’s track record
During roster cutdown weekend, Pittsburgh traded Johnson to the Packers for a late-round pick in 2028. The fact that the Steelers were able to recoup any draft value for Johnson is a win in my book. But I do understand the broader concern.
The Steelers traded Broderick Jones, a former first-round pick. They traded Kaleb Johnson, a third-round pick. Neither player panned out, and Pittsburgh didn’t get premium draft capital in return for either. At some point, it’s time for general manager Omar Khan to start hitting on some of these more valued picks.
But to be fair to Khan, I could look at the 2023 draft class and, outside of Jones, name four guys who are key contributors — players who have been paid or are going to get paid, as is the case with cornerback Joey Porter Jr. So the track record isn’t all bad.
Whether Khan can avoid repeating these missteps with future early/mid-round picks will be one of the defining questions of his tenure as GM.
