Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson took a hilarious shot at the NFL after the “No Fun League” fined him for his unsportsmanlike conduct in Week 15 against the Carolina Panthers.
For those who missed it, Johnson was called for the violation midway through the third quarter of the contest when he celebrated his drive, shouting and then staring down Panthers safety Jeremy Chinn. The referees saw it as taunting and slapped him with the punishment.
A week after the incident, the NFL fined the Steelers wideout $10,609 for the unsportsmanlike conduct. For his part, Johnson responded by saying, “Boy NFL really be trying get in ya pockets… SMH.”
Diontae Johnson has his gain reversed on a taunting foul, but gets the 1st & 10. More in our liveblog https://t.co/igYWVXv0K6 pic.twitter.com/jo9ppAXhxp
— Fᴏᴏᴛʙᴀʟʟ Zᴇʙʀᴀs🇺🇦 (@footballzebras) December 18, 2022
Diontae Johnson also previously said that he didn't even know that Jeremy Chinn was lying on the ground when he celebrated, which is a plausible explanation given that it was only when he turned around that he saw the Panthers player.
However, perhaps the officials took note of his staredown and the fact that Chinn also almost confronted him, with things seemingly set to escalate.
“He was just there, and I didn't see him there. It was in the moment. It was nothing toward him or whatever,” Johnson said of the taunting controversy.
The good news for the Steelers is that they won the said contest 24-16 and kept their playoff hopes alive. Although they have a slim chance to move to the postseason, at least they are still not totally out. For now, Johnson and the rest of Pittsburgh will need to focus on that.
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