Diontae Johnson Released by Browns Amid Roster Cuts Before 2025 NFL Season

Veteran wide receiver Diontae Johnson is back on the open market ahead of the start of the 2025 season.

Per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, the Cleveland Browns will be releasing Johnson as part of their roster cuts on Tuesday. Johnson had signed with the team as a free agent in April. He confirmed his release with a message of gratitude on social media:

As NFL Network's Tom Pelissero noted, Johnson's release marks the eighth time the wide receiver has been involved in a transaction in the last 18 months:

Johnson is coming off a tumultuous 2024 season that saw him suit up for three different franchises. After spending the first five years of his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, he was traded to the Carolina Panthers as he entered the final year of his contract. He played just seven games with the Panthers before being traded to the Baltimore Ravens, who later waived him after a disappointing four-game stretch. He was claimed by the Houston Texans and appeared in just one game before being waived again.

During his brief stint with the Ravens, Johnson's year went from bad to worse when he received a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team after he refused to enter a game against the Philadelphia Eagles. In his four games in Baltimore, he had just one catch for six yards. He caught two passes for 12 yards in his lone appearance for Houston.

Before his uninspiring 2024 campaign, Johnson was one of the best deep threats in the league. He averaged a career-high 14.1 yards per catch in 2023 and has a career average of 11.2 ypc. His best season came in 2021 when he recorded 107 receptions for 1,161 yards and eight touchdowns, all career highs.

Now that he's back on the open market, Johnson should garner interest from teams in need of wide receiver depth, but he doesn't appear to be an impact player at this stage.