Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said on Tuesday that he would allow wide receiver Diontae Johnson to speak for himself about the lack of effort he showed in trying to make a tackle after a lost fumble by running back Jaylen Warren in last Sunday’s win over the Bengals.
The play came one snap after officials ruled that Johnson did not complete a touchdown catch and the call went unchallenged because, per Tomlin, the Steelers didn’t get the correct replay fast enough. Johnson unconvincingly said after the game that he didn’t see the fumble, but was more forthcoming while addressing the play again on Wednesday.
Johnson said he spoke to his Steelers teammates about what happened and said he wasn’t “out there just trying to mess up” while acknowledging that he can’t do the same thing in the future.
“It was really just me owning up to what I did on Sunday to the team and just let them know it won’t happen again,” Johnson said, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “How I feel and how I should go about the situation next time it occurs. I own up to it. I am not perfect. So all I can do is keep moving forward and just play football. That’s all I’m worried about.”
Center Mason Cole told reporters that he and other members of the team “trust Diontae that it won’t happen again” and Sunday’s game against the Cardinals will provide a chance for Johnson to put a better effort on film.