Daniel Oyefusi
BEREA, Ohio — Cleveland Browns wide receiver Diontae Johnson said Wednesday that he wants to “change the narrative” on himself after a drama-filled 2024 season in which he spent time with the Carolina Panthers, Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans.
After leading the Panthers with 30 receptions and 357 receiving yards in the first two months of the season, Johnson was traded to the Ravens with a sixth-round draft pick for Baltimore’s fifth-round selection. He lasted seven weeks with the Ravens, totaling one catch, six receiving yards and a one-game suspension for refusing to play in a Dec. 1 game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
After Baltimore waived him, Johnson was claimed by the Texans on Dec. 23 and managed two catches for 12 yards in one game with Houston. He then was waived by the Texans on Jan. 14 after he was visibly upset after playing 15 snaps in a wild-card playoff win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
Though Johnson declined to go into the specifics of what transpired last season, the comments Wednesday marked his first since the ordeal.
“I don’t want to speak on a lot of stuff,” Johnson said. “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.”
The Browns in late April signed Johnson, 28, to a one-year deal worth the veteran minimum ($1.17 million) that includes no guaranteed money. Johnson said the Browns were the only team that reached out to him in free agency before he signed.
Cleveland has a large void for a receiver opposite Jerry Jeudy, who was named to his first Pro Bowl last season. Jeudy and Johnson are the only receivers on the Browns’ roster who have caught at least 50 passes in a season.
Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said he had a “good talk” with Johnson after the team signed him.
“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.”
A third-round pick in the 2019 NFL draft, Johnson had 391 catches for 4,363 yards and 25 touchdowns with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He earned a Pro Bowl selection in 2021 with his lone 1,000-yard season and a career-high eight touchdown receptions in quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s final year.
“I’m still in that form,” Johnson said. “It’s just a matter of whenever I get my opportunities to put it on film.”
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley contributed to this report.
