One of the biggest transactions at the NFL trade deadline involved the Baltimore Ravens landing wide receiver Diontae Johnson from the Carolina Panthers.
Johnson, a former 1,000-yard receiver and Pro Bowler, seemed like the perfect addition to a Ravens offense, which is already elite on the ground behind the duo of Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson.
However, Johnson has barely seen the field during his five weeks with Baltimore and didn’t play at all in Sunday’s 24-19 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Now, it’s been revealed that Johnson didn’t play in that game because he didn’t want to play, and that has led the Ravens to suspend their new wideout.
In a statement released by the team’s EVP and GM Eric DeCosta, the Ravens announced that Johnson will sit their Week 15 game versus the Giants after having a Week 14 bye.
“Diontae’s suspension stems from refusing to enter our game against the Philadelphia Eagles. We will have no further comment on this matter going forward.”
Upon being acquired by Baltimore, along with a 2025 sixth-round pick, in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round pick headed to Carolina, Johnson’s playing time has been sporadic.
He played 17 snaps in his first game with the Ravens, which was understandable as he was still learning both the offense and the playbook. However, the next week, he saw just five snaps. He then played 11 snaps versus the team that drafted him, the Pittsburgh Steelers, in Week 11, and only six snaps in Week 12 before not taking the field versus Philadelphia in Week 13.
We don’t know why Johnson refused to play versus the Eagles, but Baltimore certainly could have used him, considering that receiver Rashod Bateman, who ranks second on the team with 574 receiving yards, suffered a knee injury mid-game. It resulted in Bateman playing a season-low in snaps, and with Johnson’s refusal to play, the Ravens were left with just three healthy wideouts for over half of the game.
Johnson has caught just one pass for six yards in a Ravens uniform after being Carolina’s leading receiver through the first seven weeks of the season. His 357 yards and three receiving touchdowns with the Panthers both still rank second on the team, despite him last playing for the team six weeks ago.
Many people thought something a bit peculiar was happening with Johnson’s lack of playing time in the Eagles game after coach John Harbaugh’s cryptic comments in his press conference following the loss.
Bateman’s injury isn’t considered a long-term thing, and the team’s bye week is around the corner. Also, perhaps, playing a part in Baltimore suspending Johnson as it tries to keep up in the AFC playoff race is that the Ravens’ next opponent, the Giants, has the worst record (2-10) in the NFL and ranks dead last in scoring offense, so Baltimore should, presumably, be able to prevail without Johnson’s services.
Johnson was traded to Carolina this offseason after spending his first five seasons with Baltimore’s chief rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
He’s accumulated 4,726 receiving yards in his career, with his best season coming in 2021, when he had 107 receptions for 1,161 yards and eight touchdowns. He ranked in the top 10 in both catches and receiving yards en route to the only Pro Bowl appearance of his career.
For all of his talent, Johnson has also raised eyebrows when he has been on the field. Last year, he was singled out for a lack of effort in not going for a fumble in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals, a game that took place just a week after the receiver got into a locker room altercation with then-teammate Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Also, last season, Johnson was flagged in a game versus the Los Angeles Rams for taunting and was then fined afterward by the league for the action. That was his second taunting flag and suspension, as both also occurred during the 2022 season in a game against a team that would be his future employer, the Panthers.
His next opportunity to play for the Ravens will come in Week 16, which is coincidentally against another of his former teams, the Steelers.
