Steelers trading WR Diontae Johnson to Panthers, sources say - ESPN

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers are shipping wide receiver Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers for cornerback Donte Jackson and a pick swap, league sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Tuesday.

The Steelers are sending the Panthers a seventh-round draft pick in addition to the receiver and receiving a sixth-round pick with the cornerback.

Johnson was the Steelers' most experienced wide receiver and longest-tenured offensive player. A third-round pick in the 2019 draft, he is in the final year of his contract and comes with a $15.8 million cap hit.

Jackson, meanwhile, has spent his entire career in Carolina after being selected in the second round of the 2018 draft. He started 16 games in 2023 after an Achilles injury prematurely ended his 2022 season. Jackson is scheduled to have a similar cap hit to Johnson, counting $15.7 million against the cap in the final year of his deal.

A league source told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler last week that the Panthers were planning to trade or release Jackson, who has 14 career interceptions, including four his rookie season, but none this past season. Moving on from Jackson leaves Carolina looking for a starting corner to play opposite Jaycee Horn. However, Johnson gives quarterback Bryce Young, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft, an additional weapon as the Panthers look to climb from an NFL-worst 2-15 record this past season.

Johnson had five touchdown receptions and 717 receiving yards on 51 catches in 2023, after not scoring a single touchdown the previous season. Johnson also earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2021 with his lone 1,000-yard season and a career-high eight touchdown receptions in quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's final year.

In five seasons with the Steelers, Johnson racked