Fantasy Reaction: Diontae Johnson Traded to Panthers

Bryce Young gets a new toy, but biggest winners might be a pair or Pittsburgh pass-catchers.

The Carolina Panthers started to add weapons for second-year quarterback Bryce Young Tuesday, acquiring Diontae Johnson in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The move doesn’t have major fantasy implications, but it will affect the value of several players when it comes to building our future fantasy teams in drafts.

Johnson will now be the No. 1 wideout for Young, who struggled in his rookie year. Johnson’s numbers haven’t been great since Ben Roethlisberger retired, however, as D.J. has scored just five touchdowns and averaged fewer than 12 fantasy points in his last 30 games as a member of the Steelers. I’m not sure he’ll be significantly better in Carolina, so I’d consider him a No. 3 fantasy wideout or flex option.

Johnson’s best season came in 2021, when he caught 107 passes for 1,161 yards and eight touchdowns. Last season, he had 51 catches for 717 yards and five scores :: Jessica Rapfogel/USA TODAY Sports

Johnson’s presence does make Young a bit more attractive among field generals, but he’ll still be a low-end No. 2 fantasy option (at best). On the flip side, it will hurt Adam Thielen. The soon-to-be 34-year-old wideout led the Panthers in targets (137), catches (103) and fantasy points (231) last season, and it wasn’t even close. Those totals are destined to fall with the acquisition of Johnson, making Thielen less attractive. The trade also keeps 2023 second-round pick Jonathan Mingo from being a potential sleeper.

In Pittsburgh, the Steelers now have a hole at wide receiver behind George Pickens. Remember, the team cut Allen Robinson, leaving Calvin Austin III, Dez Fitzpatrick and Marquez Callaway as the other top wideouts under contract. Obviously, the Steelers will add wide receivers in the draft (they’ve done well picking young wideouts in the past), but Pickens sees a nice bump in value regardless.

Fantasy fans should also remember that new Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith likes to run 13 personnel (which is one running back and three tight ends). In fact, only the Arizona Cardinals ran more 13 last season than Smith’s former team, the Atlanta Falcons. That’s good news for Pat Freiermuth, who’ll be catching passes from Russell Wilson. Speaking of Wilson, he loses a bit of luster, too, without D.J.

Overall, the biggest winner as a result of this trade is Pickens with Young seeing a slight bump in value, too. I don’t think either one of these teams is done adding weapons to their respective offenses, however, so stay tuned!

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