On a night where the Steelers celebrated the life of former receivers coach Darryl Drake, it was fitting that rookie wideout Diontae Johnson, the player Drake lobbied for Pittsburgh to draft this past spring, made his NFL debut in Pittsburgh's second preseason game against the Chiefs. 

And what a debut it was. 

Johnson, the 66th overall pick in this year's draft, caught his first NFL touchdown pass, a 24-yard catch that capped off Pittsburgh's 17-7 victory. 

After the game, Johnson spoke to reporters for the first time since Drake's death. Drake, 62, a longtime coach who died earlier this month, reportedly experienced chest pains the night before he passed. Drake's funeral took place hours before the game. 

"That touchdown was for coach Drake," Johnson said, per Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "Everything he coached me to do, I did. I made that touchdown for him. Every touchdown I score this year will be for him."

Drake is the biggest reason why Johnson is a Steeler. He spoke at length about his pre-draft meeting with Johnson shortly after the Steelers made him the 66th overall pick. While some fans thought the Steelers reached by taking Johnson that early, Drake explained why Pittsburgh couldn't have waited until their next third-round pick (the 83rd overall pick) to take Johnson, who caught 21 touchdown passes in three years with the Rockets. 

"I know for a fact Tampa Bay was going to take him on their next pick, and I got cussed out by the Tampa Bay head coach (former Pittsburgh OC Bruce Arians) who called me some names for taking him because that was his guy," Drake said, via Jim Wexell of 247Sports. "We all talk, receiver coaches talk. He was the one guy everybody talked about, and there wasn't one guy who didn't like this guy."

Along with his tangibles as a football player, Drake explained how Johnson's intangibles convinced him that he was the receiver Pittsburgh needed to draft. 

"Not only is he a tremendous football player, but a tremendous young man," Drake said. "I basically fell in love with him after spending time with him and dining with him and talking to him and seeing his passion for the game, his passion for wanting to be great, and his passion for his teammates. He did an outstanding job at Toledo, not only as a wide receiver but in multi-positions, special teams as a returner. Just a tremendously gifted young man. The most natural catcher that I've seen in a while.

"He did have some concentration drops, like they all do, but he's very gifted as far as catching the football," Drake continued. "Doesn't have great timed speed but he plays the game fast. Really, really good versus press, and as you guys know this is a press league. Those DBs walk up in your face and they try to fingerprint you, and he's very elusive at the line of scrimmage. You need a guy who can get off the ball, and the thing that he does he gets off the ball, gets in and out of his breaks as well as anybody that I've seen in a long time. He was a guy that I wanted, and I just appreciate Kevin (Colbert) and Mike (Tomlin) seeing the same things that I saw in this young man. As you get to be around him, you're going to love his smile and his personality and his style of play.

"So, again, very excited about the pick. I think he's a guy that Steeler Nation is going to be very, very excited about."

Steeler Nation is slowly getting excited about Johnson, who came to training camp in significantly better shape after having a so-so rookie minicamp. Johnson was having a tremendous camp before sustaining a lower-body injury that kept him out of Pittsburgh's first preseason game, a victory over the Buccaneers. 

Ben Roethlisberger was asked about Johnson's recent absence from camp prior to the Steelers' game against the Chiefs. 

"You'd like to see him on the field because then you can kinda see what he can and can't do," Roethlisberger said. "We always say when young guys come in [that] It's hard because they just played a whole college season, they've trained for the combine, they've trained for the draft and not they're right out here. That's why guys hit the rookie wall. As we start the break here, I think guys usually start getting healthier, and I hope we can get him on the field more to see what he can do. Because he's got some talent, he really does." 

While he still has a way to go, Johnson's early preseason success should go a long way towards strengthening his confidence as the preseason hits its midway point. Johnson will also look to continue honoring the memory of Drake with his play on the field and his demeanor off of it.  

"We clicked as soon as we met each other," Johnson said of Drake. "After that, there wasn't any separating us. That was my guy. And he's still my guy to this day."