The Pittsburgh Steelers activated wide receiver Diontae Johnson from injured reserve Saturday and placed tight end Pat Freiermuth on injured reserve.
Johnson suffered a hamstring injury during the third quarter of Pittsburgh’s season-opening loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 10. He had three catches for 48 yards before exiting the game.
The 27-year-old Johnson, in his fifth season with the Steelers, was a Pro Bowl selection in 2021 after making 107 receptions for 1,161 yards with eight touchdowns in 16 games (14 starts). Last season, he started all 17 games and caught 86 passes for 882 yards but didn’t score.
He has 3,694 yards and 20 touchdowns in 65 career games (57 starts).
Freiermuth, 24, aggravated his hamstring injury in Thursday’s practice and had an MRI on Friday morning.
He initially suffered the injury with 6:53 left in the third quarter of a 30-6 loss to the host Houston Texans on Oct. 1. He did not return to the contest.
Freiermuth has eight receptions for 53 yards and two touchdowns in four games this season. He has 131 catches for 1,282 yards and 11 scores since being selected by Pittsburgh in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
The Steelers (3-2) will lean on Connor Heyward and rookie Darnell Washington at the tight end spot for Sunday’s game against the host Rams (3-3).
–Field Level Media
