Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson is one of the more underrated players in the NFL at the position. He has had a few bouts with drops in his career, but he is a player that the Steelers trust wholeheartedly on the field to get the job done when his number is called.

However, there are now concerns about the next time that he will be on the field. According to Mark Kaboly of The Athletic, Johnson was removed from the practice field today via cart but was unsure of what happened.

The start of training camp is always difficult. Players are back with their teams after at least a month apart as minicamps ended in June. For some players, training camp is the first time that they will be reporting to their team this offseason.

Given how hot it is currently in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, where the Steelers are holding training camp, it could be a heat-related issue. For Johnson and the team’s sake, hopefully, it was just a bout of fighting off some dehydration and he will be back in the mix in no time.

Were Johnson to miss any time, George Pickens would be thrust into the clear-cut No. 1 role in the Steelers’ passing offense. Veteran Allen Robinson, who was acquired via trade from the Los Angeles Rams earlier this offseason, would assume a larger role as well.

Last season, Johnson had 140+ targets for the third consecutive season. He caught 86 passes for 882 yards but didn’t have a receiving touchdown. The Steelers’ passing offense wasn’t overly productive last season, with Mitchell Trubisky starting out the season under center before giving way to rookie Kenny Pickett.

Pittsburgh is hopeful that things will be more dynamic in 2023 with Pickett entering Year 2 of his career and being the unquestioned starter all offseason. However, it will be tougher to get things going if Johnson were to be sidelined for any amount of time.