Ravens GM Explains What Happened With Diontae Johnson

The Diontae Johnson saga with the Baltimore Ravens has been a confusing one to follow.

Nov 17, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Diontae Johnson (18) reaches for an incomplete pass against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images / Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Diontae Johnson's brief time with the Baltimore Ravens certainly left more to be desired after the team made a midseason trade to acquire him.

The veteran wide receiver played had just one catch and played four games with the Ravens this season before Baltimore waived him less than two months after the trade. Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta recently opened up about this saga and wasn't shy to admit that things didn't exactly go as the front office had hoped.

“I think we looked at it as a chance for us to strengthen a position group, potentially, [with] a guy we’ve played against a lot,” DeCosta said. “I think we did our homework. We understood the risks and the rewards. [We] didn’t look at it as cost prohibitive. It was a relatively inexpensive deal for us to make, in many ways. We knew that it wasn’t 100% going to be a slam dunk. It didn’t work out. We always try to mitigate our risks. One of the jobs of a general manager is to mitigate your risk and look at the downside and the upside and see how it works out. In that particular situation, I really didn’t see a lot of downside. I think we understood what the downside might be – that he would be unhappy with his role, potentially.”

After spending the first five years of his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Johnson was traded to the Carolina Panthers in the offseason before being traded to the Ravens on Oct. 29. Baltimore then waived him on Dec. 20 after he had just one catch for six yards in four appearances with the team. The Houston Texans then claimed him on Dec. 23.

Houston waived Johnson on Jan. 14 before the Ravens claimed him, allowing Baltimore to potentially get a compensatory draft pick if another team signs him before the Super Bowl since he is techincally an unrestricted free agent until then.

Super Bowl LIX kicks off from New Orleans on Sunday, Feb. 9.

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