Diontae Johnson's Shawshank celebration is every Steelers fan right now
By Kristen Wong
Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson had one of the most unique -- and depressing -- droughts in the league: he had gone 119 catches without a receiving touchdown.
In Week 9's Thursday Night Football matchup against the Titans, Johnson finally did it. He broke the streak. He tasted the rain.
Johnson caught a pass from Kenny Pickett in the end zone with less than five minutes to go in the fourth quarter to give Pittsburgh the lead. He currently is leading the team with seven catches for 90 yards and one touchdown.
For reference, the last time Johnson caught a touchdown was in Week 17 in the 2021 season from Ben Roethlisberger. How long has it been since then? 771 routes. 668 days. 199 targets. A whole lot of built-up frustration.
Diontae Johnson performs the Shawshank celly after ending TD drought
It's only fitting, then, that to celebrate this glorious moment Johnson emulated a scene from one of the greatest movies of all time.
Does anyone care that Johnson dropped a walk-in touchdown on the play prior? Not really.
After all, what Johnson did afterward was the definition of redemption, playing into the themes of that Morgan Freeman/Tim Robbins masterpiece. The parallels don't exactly match, but the feelings, the vibes are there.
The Steelers will come away with their fifth win of the season in an ugly primetime game, and Johnson will finally -- finally -- get a good night's sleep.