In The News: John Harbaugh Sends Clear Message to 31 Teams With Diontae Johnson Suspension as Ex-NFLer Slams Ravens WR for ‘Career Suicide….Read More

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.

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 before the Panthers started to tail off and decided to trade him to the Ravens. 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.