Much talk surrounding the Pittsburgh Steelers this season has centered on quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's sluggish start through four games played.
The Steelers passer has looked like a shell of his former self this year. He currently holds a 5.5 adjusted yards gained per pass attempt average, which is on pace to be a new career-low for him in a full season. More so, the veteran quarterback has averaged a 4.5 completed air yards per pass completion mark over the ongoing campaign. Among quarterbacks with at least 100 pass attempts recorded this season, only Matt Ryan (4.4) and Jared Goff (4.0) have posted a lower such figure.
For Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson, he still has confidence in the two-time Super Bowl winner. In speaking during a recent press conference ahead of the Steelers' home matchup against the Denver Broncos, Johnson offered his early takeaways of the veteran passer this year.
“I feel like he’s been playing great,” Johnson said. “He’s going to have a couple of bad throws. It’s football. The best of the best are going to do that. I see past that because at the end of the day that is my quarterback.
“I will always have his back. I will still go out there and make plays for him to make him look good.”
There have been outside calls as of late for the Steelers to bench Roethlisberger, which would then see either Mason Rudolph or Dwayne Haskins come in as the starting quarterback for the team.
Johnson is not interested in such talk at this point in the campaign but is rather optimistic that Roethlisberger will soon be able to turn around his season.
“The way I see him practice,” Johnson said. “They (doubters) from the outside looking in. They don’t know what we are doing each day. The hard work he puts in. We just have to shut out the noise and just focus on us. We are going to bounce back.”
The Steelers will look to avoid an 0-3 record at home this season in Week 5 against Denver.
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