Panthers quarterback Bryce Young will start for former teammate Diontae Johnson

The Carolina Panthers claim they decided weeks ago to trade wide receiver Diontae Johnson before Tuesday’s deal with the Baltimore Ravens was announced. So why did they give up Johnson when he was clearly the best wide receiver they had on the roster? There’s almost certainly more to it than that, but it may have had something to do with Johnson’s post-game comments this season.

After the team’s loss in Week 2 Johnson questioned the play callingwhich is pretty wild after just two games, no matter how bad the results were. More recently, Johnson raised eyebrows again when he vented after the loss told the Washington Commanders that he can’t play every position or make every play.

You can protest the deal (and the return) all you want, but it’s clear that Carolina viewed Johnson as a serious problem – otherwise they wouldn’t have agreed to part with him for so little and most of his salary to pay on top of that.

No matter how bad Johnson’s reputation in the NFL gets, at least some of his former teammates are sticking up for him. Newcomer Xavier Legette admitted to being surprised by the decision. Meanwhile, Bryce Young went to work for Johnson’s beleaguered character.

If nothing else, the Panthers have a model spokesperson in Bryce Young. At least he always says the right things.

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