Diontae Johnson, Minkah Fitzpatrick Got in Altercation After Steelers’ Loss to Browns, per Report

Tensions appear high in Pittsburgh amid offensive struggles.
Diontae Johnson, Minkah Fitzpatrick Got in Altercation After Steelers’ Loss to Browns, per Report
Diontae Johnson, Minkah Fitzpatrick Got in Altercation After Steelers’ Loss to Browns, per Report /

The Steelers‘ 13–10 loss to the Browns Sunday was a major blow to Pittsburgh’s playoff hopes, dropping the team to 6–4 at Thanksgiving in football’s deepest division.

However, it may also have put a considerable damper on the Steelers' morale as well.

Pittsburgh wide receiver Diontae Johnson got in an altercation with safety Minkah Fitzpatrick after the game, according to a Saturday evening report from ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Per Schefter, Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward and linebacker T.J. Watt stepped into break up the brief fracas.

“One source told ESPN that Johnson, the Steelers’ second-leading receiver, continued ‘chirping’ at the coaches all the way into the locker room,” Schefter wrote, “where Fitzpatrick … began arguing with Johnson.” 

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson reportedly ‘chirped’ coaches and got into it with Minkah Fitzpatrick after the recent loss to the Cleveland Browns :: Denny Simmons/The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network

The exchange then became increasingly heated before Heyward and Watt stepped in to defuse it, per Schefter.

Johnson had appeared visibly frustrated during the game as Pittsburgh mustered just 249 yards in a slugfest—the team's last game before firing offensive coordinator Matt Canada. He finished with just two catches for 16 yards as Cleveland beat the Steelers on a late field goal.

Pittsburgh visits the 5–5 Bengals this week in a battle with massive postseason implications.


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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .