An embarrassing Week 1 loss to the San Francisco 49ers was made even worse for the Pittsburgh Steelers following news that star wide receiver Diontae Johnson will be out for multiple weeks with a hamstring injury he suffered in the third quarter of Sunday's game. The team hopes that Johnson can avoid a trip to the injured reserve, which would require him to miss four games

Not only does Johnson's absence hurt the Pittsburgh offense, but it certainly presents complications as well as intrigue moving forward for fantasy football owners who either own Johnson or other skill position players on the Steelers.

The most obvious candidate for an uptick in production is George Pickens. Pickens was the downfield, red zone threat for the Steelers last year, averaging five more yards per catch than Johnson and hauling in four touchdowns (Johnson had none). The question now is whether he can be the underneath option, the crisp route-runner that Johnson was.

While Pickens is the first choice fantasy football owners will turn to in terms of a direct positional replacement, Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth is actually the better fit to step in and fill Johnson's role. Freiermuth finished second on the team last year with 63 receptions and was a reliable option to move the chains on third down. The third-year tight end will certainly become Kenny Pickett's first option in hot-read situations.

In terms of a candidate for a breakout fantasy role with Johnson out, Allen Robinson is likely going to see the biggest increase in targets. Robinson — acquired in a trade from the Los Angeles Rams in the offseason — had five catches, plus his eight targets and 64 receiving yards both led the team in the season opener. Robinson played 89% of snaps in his first game for Pittsburgh and 53 of the yards he gained came in the second half after Diontae Johnson left the game. While he is far from a WR1, Robinson is worth a look in deeper leagues and could be a viable Flex option in PPR leagues if he continues to be a consistent target for Kenny Pickett. At age 30, he is the elder statesman of the Pittsburgh offense and will know how to fill Johnson's gap in the offense.

The hardest player to predict in terms of the fantasy impact of Diontae Johnson's injury is running back Najee Harris. Johnson has played all but one game since Harris entered the league in 2021. In that September 2021 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals, a Ben Roethlisberger-led offense dominated the yardage and time of possession battle, but turnovers and an inability to convert on third down doomed the Steelers to a 24-10 defeat.

The notable takeaway from that game was that Najee Harris caught 14 passes for 102 — equaling his total of 14 rushes that afternoon. The Steelers will definitely look to give Harris more than the six carries (for 31 yards) he had against the 49ers, but with Johnson out, teams will respect the Pittsburgh passing attack even less — making things even more difficult for Harris on the ground. Proceed cautiously with Harris, as his touches might increase, but don't expect his efficiency to improve.

One final surprise candidate for an increase in touches is Calvin Austin, as the second-year wideout who missed 2022 with an injury will move up to be the Steelers' number three wide receiver. Austin had six catches for 37 yards in his debut and is a speedy deep threat worth monitoring.

Diontae Johnson's injury is far from ideal for the Pittsburgh Steelers, or fantasy football managers, but a number of players can receive increased opportunities in Johnson's absence.