Diontae Johnson Says Browns Were Only Team to Contact Him in 2025 NFL Free Agency

After a tumultuous 2024 season that saw him change teams four times, wide receiver Diontae Johnson didn't have many teams calling him in free agency.

Johnson, who signed with the Cleveland Browns in April, said the Browns were the only team to contact him this offseason.

“Yeah, that was really the only team that hit me up," Johnson said, per Yahoo Sports' Jori Epstein.

Johnson started the 2024 season with the Carolina Panthers after an offseason trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers and collected 357 yards and three touchdowns in seven games.

The Panthers traded him to the Baltimore Ravens in October for a fifth-round pick, but his first stint with the team didn't last long. He had just one reception across four games before being suspended by the team in December for refusing to enter a game against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Ravens waived him later that month.

The Houston Texans picked Johnson up off waivers in December, but he appeared in just one game, recording two receptions for 12 yards, before being let go. That led to the Ravens picking him up off waivers, though it was a "procedural move" that landed Baltimore a compensatory pick, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Johnson finished the 2024 season with 33 receptions, 375 yards and three touchdowns, recording most of his numbers in the first seven games of the season with the Panthers.

While Johnson was highly inconsistent and brought plenty of off-field drama during the 2024 season, the Browns signed him to a veteran's minimum $1.17 million deal that doesn't include any guaranteed money. If he doesn't work out in Cleveland, it won't hurt the Browns too much.

But Johnson, who recorded a career-high 1,161 yards and eight touchdowns just four years ago in Pittsburgh, isn't focused on what happened in 2024. The 28-year-old is looking to put the past behind him and come back strong in 2025.

“Last year was last year," he told reporters. "Just worry about this year.”