HEADLINES

Marcus Major

Ravens Signing RB D’Ernest Johnson, Waiving K John Hoyland

August 2nd, 2025 at 4:17pm CST by Ely Allen

It’s been a busy day of transactions in Baltimore, and while the names aren’t huge, the implications could be. The most impactful transactions of the day see the team bringing in veteran running back D’Ernest Johnson (per ESPN’s Adam Schefter) and waiving undrafted rookie kicker John Hoyland (per Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports).

According to Jamison Hensley of ESPN, Johnson is joining the Ravens as a depth piece in Baltimore’s camp. In a room that contains Derrick Henry, Justice Hill, Keaton Mitchell, Rasheen Ali, and undrafted rookie Marcus Major, the Ravens have plenty of bodies, but Henry and Hill are not expected to play in the preseason and Major is currently dealing with a concussion. With preseason games starting this week, Johnson stands to get plenty of opportunities alongside Mitchell and Ali.

It’s been a while since Johnson held a significant role on an offense. After going undrafted out of USF in 2018, Johnson opted to play in the Alliance of American Football league in 2019. When the league came to an end, Johnson signed with the Browns and made the 53-man roster as RB3 behind Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. An injury to Hunt in 2021, allowed for Johnson to step into the RB2 role, in which he rushed for 534 yards and three touchdowns. In the three years since, Johnson has held minor roles in Cleveland and Jacksonville.

Hoyland’s waiving is significant due to the fact that he’s been in a two-man kicking competition with fellow rookie Tyler Loop for the honor of succeeding Justin Tucker as the team’s primary kicker. Loop was struggling early as he made changes to his technique and kicking motions at the request 0f Baltimore special teams coach Randy Brown. For a while, Hoyland was being tabbed as a likely candidate to be one of the undrafted rookies to make a 53-man roster that the Ravens are so notorious for.

Hoyland’s departure seems to indicate that Loop will open the season as the Ravens’ new kicker. Per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, head coach John Harbaugh claimed that cutting the undrafted rookie “was more about having roster needs elsewhere.” According to Harbaugh, “Loop is kicking well enough to win the job, but it’s going to be about the games.”

Elsewhere on the roster, the Ravens are adding tight ends Baylor Cupp (per Zenitz) and Scotty Washington (per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2) in the wake of the injury to Isaiah Likely. Joining Hoyland on the waiver wire will be fellow undrafted rookie Sam Pitz, a tight end out of Minnesota-Duluth.

Ravens Sign 17 UDFAs

May 4th, 2025 at 6:36pm CST by Ely Allen

Going stride-for-stride with the Seahawks in competition for the league’s largest rookie crop, the Ravens, much like Seattle, have signed 17 undrafted free agent rookies to join their 11-man draft class. The newest additions to Baltimore’s 28-man rookie class are:

The Ravens are notorious for finding undrafted free agents who have potential to make the 53-man roster. That will be a tall task for this year’s group as 17 of them compete with the 11 draft picks. That goes double for the several small school signees like Hutchinson, Jackson, Lowery, Ntoh, Penning, and Pitz, who will have to show what they can do in camp after playing inferior competition in college.

Christian-Lichtenhan certainly stands out as a possible contender for a roster spot. After the Ravens entered the draft needing to add bodies at tackle, Christian-Lichtenhan has volunteered his 6-foot-8, 315-pound frame for the job. After graduating from Colorado with a degree and 19 starts at left tackle to his name, Christian-Lichtenhan transferred to Corvallis, where he started all 12 games as the blindside blocker for the Beavers.

In Higgins and Martin, the team brings in two inside linebackers, a position at which Baltimore usually harbors hard-working UDFAs for their special teams value. Higgins was projected to be a late-Day 3 pick but just slipped out of the draft. In his two years as a starter (out of five total with the Hawkeyes), Higgins notched 295 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, three forced fumbles, 14 passes defensed, and five interceptions. After his only season as a starter at East Tennessee State, Martin leveraged a strong year into a transfer to Memphis. For the Tigers, Martin started two seasons, tallying 206 tackles, 33.0 tackles for loss, 10.0 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, nine passes defensed, and three interceptions. Both are undersized backers who display sideline-to-sideline ability and strong coverage abilities.

Jackson stands, perhaps, the strongest chance to make the roster from the small schools. Jackson started three of his five seasons in Normal. His final two years (172 tackles, 11.0 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, 11 passes defensed, and four interceptions) were his strongest. His versatility earned him first-team All-MVFC honors, and he was recognized at the Senior Bowl as the National team’s Top DB. His versatility gives him a strong chance to compete for a roster spot.