John Harbaugh Sends Clear Message to 31 Teams With Diontae Johnson Suspension as Ex-NFLer Slams Ravens WR for ‘Career Suicide’

“You never know what the future holds.” These words by Diontae Johnson in November after the Steelers game seem prophetic now. The Ravens haven’t had the desired results from Johnson, despite pairing him with elite quarterback Lamar Jackson. The wide receiver has recorded just one catch for six yards since joining the team. He had the chance to bolster his value ahead of free agency, but it looks like he may not get the chance to improve these numbers any time soon and is future is uncertain.

The Ravens’ 24-19 loss to the Eagles was highlighted not by Justin Tucker missing three kicks in the game, but by the absence of the former Pittsburgh receiver, Johnson. As it turned out, Johnson had refused to enter the game against the Eagles, and John Harbaugh and his GM had enough. A suspension was handed out, clouding his future in Baltimore, and former NFL QB Chris Simms has suggested that with such behavior Johnson could be jeopardizing his career.

Is Diontae Johnson sabotaging himself?

After the Eagles defeat, John Harbaugh held off talking about why Johnson was not available for the game and refused to answer any questions over the situation on Monday as well. But on Wednesday, general manager Eric DeCosta released a statement saying, “We have made the difficult decision to suspend Diontae Johnson for our upcoming game against the New York Giants for conduct detrimental to the team. Diontae’s suspension stems from refusing to enter our game against the Philadelphia Eagles. We will have no further comments on this matter going forward.”

On NBC Pro Football Talk, Mike Florio pointed out how John Harbaugh and the Ravens are dragging Johnson’s name in the dirt for not doing his job. Chris Simms on the other hand, thinks the receiver’s got problems if teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Ravens are unwilling to entertain him for a long time and implied how no teams in the NFL might want him after his stunt.

“When the Steelers and the Ravens are not sure they want you anymore, two teams that are famous for kind of managing renegades and personalities and all that, you got problems. The NFL is going to look at Diontae Johnson and go, ‘What the hell do we want that guy for?’’

A third-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, Johnson made a name for himself at the Steelers. Till his tenure in Pittsburgh, he had 391 catches, 4,363 receiving yards, and 25 receiving TDs before being traded to the Panthers. His brief stint in Carolina started well and he led the Panthers in receiving through seven games, with 30 catches for 357 yards and three touchdowns. But as the Panthers started to tail off they decided to trade him to the Ravens in October. But things haven’t gone to plan for either party.

One of the possible reasons Diontae Johnson missed the game against the Eagles was because he thought he wasn’t getting enough reps or usage. Johnson has only played in 4 games for the Ravens this season. He’s never had more than 2 targets in those games and the touchdowns that he scored weren’t for the Ravens. They came from his time with the Panthers.

Simms mentioned whatever is going on with Johnson, his recent antics will do him no good.

“I don’t know what he’s doing. I know he’s unhappy, he’s not playing enough and doing all that. What did he think? He was just going to come into a team that went to the AFC Championship, they’re going to be like, ‘Oh! You’re the man, we’re going to orchestrate the offense around you. I mean, they got Zay Flowers, he’s way better Diontae Johnson. Rashod Bateman, when he’s healthy, he’s definitely better than Diontae Johnson. So why did he think he should be out there catching 12 balls a football game? Who’s advising these guys? Why would you do this career su—ide? He’ll have a hard time finding a team next year,” Simms added.

The ex-NFL QB also pointed out how the Carolina Panthers quickly got rid of Johnson despite them being in dire need of a receiver. The official reason for that is Johnson needed a “change of scenery.” But Joseph Person of The Athletic pointed out that he had a “reputation for being a locker-room diva who wasn’t afraid to throw his quarterbacks under the bus.” His departure from Carolina was due to non-football-related reasons, per sources. As it appears, those reasons could prove to be the reason behind his undoing in Baltimore as well.

If Johnson is unable to redeem himself at the Ravens, it could prove to be detrimental to his NFL future. Remember, Baltimore only had to give up a fifth-round pick for Johnson and a sixth- which implies that teams across the league had little interest in adding the one-time Pro Bowler to their ranks.

His suspension and poor return on the field in four games is a blow to his market value heading into free agency. If he stays the season with the Ravens despite currently not being part of their plans, his value could plummet. But being traded twice due to off-field issues doesn’t look good either.

He did raise speculation about his future in November when talking about his plans ahead. After the defeat to the Steelers, he shared his thoughts with Pittsburgh reporter Brian Batko and didn’t sound ecstatic about his time in Baltimore. “I still love the Steelers and whatever… I’m a Raven now, but you never know what the future holds,” he said.

With that being said, there is still a team that could take a gamble with Johnson.

Potential landing spot for Diontae Johnson

With a 4-8 record in the NFC South, the New Orleans Saints are having far from a good season. They will miss out on playoffs and while they can clear space to get below the salary cap, they cannot spend big on the top free agents. So it means they will target low-cost acquisitions like Diontae Johnson.

The Saints definitely need another receiver and Johnson could prove to be the perfect fit. While New Orleans may not go with a complete rebuild, they could still look to add smartly in order to be more competitive. Johnson’s own struggles mirror those of the Saints and he could very well thrive in such an environment looking to redeem himself.

But for now, it appears his short-term and long-term future is up in the air. It would be hard for him to find a way back into John Harbaugh’s plans. The HC was noncommittal when it came to Johnson’s future with the franchise, but QB Lamar Jackson appeared to back him.

“We want him out there,” Jackson said. “He’s a great receiver. We didn’t get him from the Panthers for nothing.” The Ravens are paying the WR about $625,000 and if is able to make a comeback to the team before the end of the season, the Ravens would be keen to get some return on their investment in Johnson.