Tag: Cameron Johnston

Steelers bring back familiar face at punter

The Steelers tried out several free-agent punters before settling on Corliss Waitman.

With the news that Pittsburgh Steelers punter Cameron Johnston would be out for the year with a knee injury he suffered in Week One, the Steelers sprang into action looking for his replacement.

The Steelers brought in eight free-agent punters for workouts on Monday in hopes of finding Johnston’s replacement. The team ended up bringing back a familiar face to handle punting duties going forward.

No, the team did not re-sign Pressley Harvin III. In fact, Harvin didn’t even get a tryout. The team did sign Corliss Waitman, who was on the Steelers roster in 2020 and 2021. Waitman was most recently with the Chicago Bears.

Waitman has seven career punts with the Steelers but was the starter in Denver in 2022. He has a career average of 41.5 yards per punt on 103 career kicks.

The Steelers are now preparing to travel to Denver to take on those same Broncos that Waitman punted for two seasons ago.

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Worst fear comes true for Steelers punter Cameron Johnston

Pittsburgh Steelers punter Cameron Johnston is done for the season after suffering a knee injury in win over Atlanta Falcons.

In his post-game press conference, Mike Tomlin feared the worst for Pittsburgh Steelers punter Cameron Johnston. Those fears have come true, as Ian Rapoport reported that, indeed, Johnston is done for the season.

Johnston, who took a blow to the knee in the fourth quarter of the Steelers’ Week 1 victory over the Falcons, signed a three-year contract in March.

We have to hope Johnston heals up and returns to play again next season, as punting has been a challenge for Pittsburgh since releasing Jordan Berry in 2020.

The Steelers have options — though none near as solid as Johnston — including bringing back Pressley Harvin III (which no one wants to see).

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Bad luck strikes Steelers special teams in win over Falcons

Steelers punter Cameron Johnston suffered a serious injury in Sunday’s win.

It’s been a long time since the Pittsburgh Steelers had a serious threat as a punter. That was all supposed to change this season with the addition of Cameron Johnston. Unfortunately, Johnston didn’t even make it through his first game as a Steeler.

Johnson suffered an apparent knee injury on Sunday in the win over the Atlanta Falcons. The Steelers won the game 18-10 but after the game, head coach Mike Tomlin didn’t seem encouraged about Johnston’s status.

“He appears to have a serious injury,” was all Tomlin said when asked about Johnson in the postgame press conference. If this injury is as bad as it seems, Pittsburgh will quickly be in the market for a new starting punter. Kicker Chris Boswell booted a 43-yard punt in place of Johnson in addition to his six huge field goals.

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Steelers ST coordinator Danny Smith gushes about his new punter

Danny Smith took a shot at his old punter after practice on Tuesday.

Perhaps the most under-the-radar move the Pittsburgh Steelers made this offseason was moving on from punter Pressley Harvin III and adding Cameron Johnston in his place in free agency.

After the first day of mandatory OTAs, special teams coordinator Danny Smith addressed the media and subtly threw Harvin under the bus in his praise of Johnston.

I love him. He’s a real pro. He’s strong. He’s got game and I call game different types of punts. We could do a lot of things with him in that game,” Smith said. “He’s a pro. I love him. I really do. He’s going to really help us. I think you’re going to see a big improvement in that area with him.

It was a real head-scratcher as to why the Steelers kept Harvin as long as they did but the past is the past and Johnston is going to be the difference maker on special teams this group has been lacking.

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Former Ohio State punter Cameron Johnston signs with the Pittsburgh Steelers

Another Buckeye on the move. #GoBucks

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed former Ohio State punter Cameron Johnston.

Originally signed as an undrafted free agent in 2018 by the Philadelphia Eagles, Johnston spent three years in the City of Brotherly Love. After that, he landed in Houston with the Texans where he would have his most productive years. Johnston led the league in total punt yards in 2021 and then in 2022 had a career-best of 48.1 yards per punt while landing 37 punts inside the 20-yard line, also a career-high.

Before his NFL career began, the Australian-born punter spent his collegiate days in Scarlet and Gray from 2013-2016. He was part of the 2014 national championship team and was first-team All-Big Ten in 2016.

Johnston heads to the Steel City averaging 47.3 yards per punt which ranks third among active NFL punters.

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Steelers agree to deal with former Texans P Cameron Johnston

The Houston Texans will need to find a new punter after not re-signing Cameron Johnston.

The Houston Texans won’t bring back punter Cameron Johnston in 2024. He agreed to a new contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to KPRC 2’s Aaron Wilson.

 

Johnston, 32, has been the Texans’ punter since 2018. This past season he finished with 47.7 yards per punt and 30 punts inside the 20-yard line. Those numbers ranked 14th and seventh among his peers in 2023.

With Johnston gone, the Texans will need to find a new punter for Frank Ross’ top-rated group from a year ago. If Houston wants to sign someone in free agency, the best available punters are Rigoberto Sanchez, Tommy Townsend or Corey Bojorquez.

Steelers 2024 free agency: P Cameron Johnston agrees to terms

After striking a deal with Russell Wilson Sunday night, grabbing a punter is underwhelming, but something that needed to happen. 

When the Pittsburgh Steelers released Pressley Harvin III last month, a void remained at a significant position that we all hoped they wouldn’t use a draft pick on. It appears now that they won’t have to after agreeing to terms with former Houston Texans and Philadelphia Eagles punter Cameron Johnston.

After striking a deal with quarterback Russell Wilson Sunday night, grabbing a punter is underwhelming, but something that needed to happen.

Johnston, 32, was the NFL punting leader in 2021. Last season, he averaged 47.7 yards to Harvin’s 43.8 per punt. He landed 45.5% of his punts inside the 20-yard line with three touchbacks (Harvin: 38.5%, six touchbacks).

For his career, Johnston landed 182 punts inside the 20-yard line, 40.9% inside the 20 and a punt-yard average of 21,019.

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Special teams coordinator Frank Ross on punter Cameron Johnston: ‘Expect him to continue to get better’

The sixth-year punter has shown improvement in 2022 that Ross believes could be a key factor in his unit’s success moving forward

Punting might not be the most glamorous part of an NFL football game, but given the Houston Texans’ offensive struggles in 2022, it may be the most crucial aspect of their special teams play. Sixth-year punter Cameron Johnston has been one of the more outstanding players at his position across the league this season, and Texans special teams coordinator Frank Ross certainly seems to have taken notice.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Ross made it clear that he has high hopes for Johnston’s development and expects him to continue improving over the course of Houston’s last nine games. While Johnston may not be a finished product yet, Ross was bullish on his ability to help the special teams unit remain one of the Texans’ strengths heading into their arduous rebuild in 2023.

“We’ve got to be able to match coverage, of course,” Ross explained, “but there’s going to be a time when we’re backed up and maybe it’s going to be a go-ahead, or we have a tight lead in a game and have a go-ahead drive that they’re going to attempt, our defense needs to stand up. At that point, we need to give the longest field possible.

“So, you’re really letting him rip it and get after it hopefully in those instances. You’ve got to have the leg talent to do that, and then you’ve got to hit a good ball. Cam has been working hard. Expect him to continue to get better as we go here into the second half of the season. Just be consistent and use his tools to the best of his ability on each rep.”

Fans may not love the idea of the Texans’ punter taking center stage as one of the team’s rising stars, but if it yields Houston a strategic advantage, few will complain when they start seeing wins piling up. Punters have gotten the short end of the stick regarding hype and adulation for years in the NFL, but if you believe what Ross said in his comments on Thursday, Johnston may be able to shake the trend and become a well-known commodity for the Texans for years to come.

Former Eagles punter Cameron Johnston agrees to a 3-year, $8 million deal with the Texans

Former Eagles punter Cameron Johnston agrees to a 3-year, $8 million deal with Texans

The Arryn Sippos era is upon us, as Aaron Wilson is reporting that Cameron Johnston has signed a three-year deal with the Houston Texans.

According to Mike Kaye of NJ.com, the deal includes a $1 million signing bonus and $3 million in guaranteed money.

The Eagles decided not to tender Johnston after the worst season of his career, as the punter logged a 46.7 yards per punt average, with a career-low 41.2 net-yard average.

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Eagles restructured contract of CB Darius Slay

Philadelphia Eagles restructured the contract of CB Darius Slay

The Eagles are working to create salary-cap space and star cornerback Darius Slay is the next man up according to Ian Rapoport.

Slay has his contract restructured to help save the Eagles almost $9 million.

Slay left the Lions because he wanted to play for a winner and he’s now 30-years old, with a big contract and Super Bowl aspirations, but he’ll apparently be around for the rebuild.

Slay was good in 2020 and would have carried a cap hit of $15.75 million in 2021.

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