Cameron Johnston’s NFL career has taken some wild turns. He signed with the Steelers on a hefty contract for a punter in 2024 but played in just one game before suffering a devastating knee injury. Since then, he’s found it difficult to regain his NFL footing.
However, the cards seem to be in Johnston’s favor again in 2026. And his new special teams coordinator, Danny Crossman, thinks Johnston is ready contribute for the Steelers this year.
“I think he’s in a really good place. You know, physically I don’t see any aftereffects from the surgery. And mentally, he’s gotten better and better every week. So, you know, the last couple of weeks have been outstanding. And hopefully it continues trending in that direction,” Crossman said Tuesday via Steelers.com.
Johnston signed a three-year, $9 million deal with the Steelers before the 2024 season, a clear sign they figured he’d be their punter for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, that vision was cut drastically short. In Week 1 of that season, Johnston was injured after taking a hit while punting against Atlanta and missed the rest of the year.
The Steelers moved forward with Corliss Waitman for the rest of that season, and he did a serviceable job. Cameron Johnston competed with Waitman for the punter role heading into the 2025 season, but the Steelers chose the latter. Waitman again had some solid moments in 2025, but he wasn’t overly impressive.
Johnston himself was limited in 2025 as well. He appeared in three games for Buffalo, and one with the New York Giants. He punted 11 times for an average of 44.5 yards, the lowest single-season average of his career. Just two of his 11 punts were downed inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.
This offseason, the Steelers brought Johnston back on a one-year deal with the hopes he can find his pre-injury form. Up until his injury, Johnston had put together a very respectable career. In 2021, he led all punters in total yardage with 4,108 and had an impressive 4,229 the following season. In each of those two years, he downed 37 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.
Crossman has made it clear the job won’t simply be given to Cameron Johnston. He’s going to have to earn it, and prove his injury woes are behind him. His 2025 season didn’t exactly assuage those worries. However, he certainly has a career resume to back him up. If he can bounce back in 2026, Johnston could be quite the addition for the Steelers.