To say that Diontae Johnson's time with the Baltimore Ravens went poorly would be the understatement of the century.
Johnson, who previously made the Pro Bowl as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021, was having a decent season with the Carolina Panthers, catching 30 passes for 357 yards and three touchdowns through seven games. After being traded to Baltimore on Oct. 29, however, he was a complete non-factor, catching just one pass for six yards in four games. Fed up with his lack of playing time, he refused to enter a game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Dec. 1, which the Ravens suspended and ultimately released him for.
Following that tumultuous saga, Johnson, now with the Cleveland Browns, wants to put the past behind him.
"I don't want to speak on a lot of stuff," Johnson said, per ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi. "Everybody's going to have their opinions, you know what I'm saying? So at the end of the day, I'm the only one in that room that really know what's going on. They're entitled to their own opinion, so I can only go off of what I know and then try to go off what I put out there and my best effort. But like I said, last year is last year. I'm trying to change that narrative and move the right way and keep going."
Johnson didn't sign with the Browns until late April, taking a one-year, $1.17 million deal with no guaranteed money. He said that Cleveland was the only team to reach out to him in free agency.
While it's clear Johnson's saga with the Ravens impacted his value, the Browns still feel he he will be a good addition.
"Diontae's doing a nice job," Stefanski said Tuesday. "Obviously getting up to speed with terminology and those types of things, and I think we'll just continue to work. But it's good to have him out here."
Furthermore, Johnson feels he can get back to the Pro Bowl form that he had in Pittsburgh.
"I'm still in that form," Johnson said. "It's just a matter of whenever I get my opportunities to put it on film."
