Diontae Johnson shows how much it costs to rip NFL officiating

Back in Week 8 of the NFL season, Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson did something that players and coaches usually avoid doing during post-game interviews -- criticize officiating. After the team's 20-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, Johnson claimed that the officials cost the Steelers the game and that they were helping their opponents win. This was due to a controversial offsides penalty on offensive guard Isaac Seumalo and the lack of a roughing the passer call on Jaguars defensive tackle Adam Gotsis that injured quarterback Kenny Pickett.

For those who were curious how much it would cost a player and coach who criticizes the officiating to the media, you received your answer on Sunday.

According to ESPN's Brooke Pryor, the NFL fined Johnson $25,000 for criticizing the officiating after the Jaguars game.

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson fined $25,000 for saying officials wanted Jaguars to win in Week 8

So, there's your answer when it comes to how much it would cost to publicly call out the referees after the game.

The call on Seumalo was made because the officials believed he was lined up in the neutral zone. That negated a 55-yard field goal by Chris Boswell, which forced the kicker to attempt a 61-yarder, which he missed. That caused the Steelers to enter halftime with a 9-3 deficit instead of a 9-6 deficit.

Then there was the lack of the call on Gotsis for the hit on Pickett that forced him out of the game. Meanwhile, Steelers safety Keanu Neal was given a roughing the passer penalty on a clean tackle on Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Speaking of Gotsis, he was fined $7,167 for his hit on Pickett.

These were why Johnson decided to call out the officiating to reporters in the Steelers locker room.

Johnson did have a much better Week 9, as did the Steelers. On Thursday Night Football, Pittsburgh beat the Tennessee Titans 20-16 to improve to 5-3 on the season. Johnson picked up his first receiving touchdown since the 2021 season, a three-yard, game-winning score in the fourth quarter.

The veteran wide receiver found out what his punishment would be days after playing another game following his comments. With that, he will have to send the league $25,000.