Diontae Johnson’s short stint with the Ravens was messy from the jump. And now, he’s finally talking. Last December, when reporters pressed John Harbaugh about Johnson’s future in Baltimore, the coach dodged with a vague, “At this time, I’m going to have to wait just to clarify it.” Not exactly a vote of confidence. The drama started way before that, though. Pittsburgh drafted Johnson in 2019, but by March 2024, the Steelers shipped him to Carolina. Then, in a twist, the Panthers flipped him to Baltimore mid-season.

Things seemed fine… until Week 13. Johnson straight-up refused to play against the Eagles. And the Ravens weren’t having it—GM Eric DeCosta suspended him for “conduct detrimental to the team.” Days later, they cut him loose. The whole thing was weird, leaving fans guessing. Now, months later, Johnson’s breaking his silence. And let’s just say… his reason? Nobody saw it coming. Turns out, Diontae Johnson’s big Ravens fallout wasn’t about drama—it was about the cold. In a recent appearance on the Sports and Suits podcast, the WR finally admitted the real reason he refused to play in that Week 13 game against the Eagles last December: 41-degree weather.

“I wasn’t getting into no run plays, no passing plays or nothing. It was cold,” Johnson said. When coaches asked him to step in after Rashod Bateman got hurt, he shut it down, “Nah, I don’t think it’s a good idea for me! Like, my legs are already ice cold… I didn’t wanna go out there and put bad stuff on film.” He wasn’t just being stubborn—he was “checked out mentally” long before that game.

Officially, Johnson lasted just seven weeks in Baltimore, but frustration had been brewing. He barely saw the field early on (just one catch in four games) and felt ignored in an offense rolling without him. By the Eagles game, he’d had enough.

Three days later, GM Eric DeCosta called his suspension a “difficult decision,” but Johnson’s version is simpler: “I told them I’m not finna go in, so I just sat on the bench.” After that messy Eagles game, Lamar Jackson admitted he pulled Johnson aside to keep him focused. “We want him out there,” Jackson said at the time. “He’s a great receiver. We didn’t get him from the Panthers for nothing.” But by then, it was too late – Johnson had already made up his mind.

Diontae Johnson’s cold war with the Ravens

When pressed about why Diontae Johnson mysteriously sat out that Eagles game, John Harbaugh danced around the truth like a man avoiding landmines. “There’s some moving parts there… that’s the best I can do in fairness to everybody right now.” Translation: This situation is a mess. And I’m not touching it. At that point, Johnson had become a ghost in Baltimore’s offense—just 17 snaps and zero catches in three games.

And when asked if the receiver even had a future with the team, Harbaugh’s “We’ll just work it out” sounded more like a breakup line than a vote of confidence. Ravens cut Johnson weeks later. Only to bizarrely reclaim him off waivers in January 2025, despite knowing he couldn’t play another snap that season. It was a head-scratcher—why bring back a guy who quit on you? Maybe they hoped for a trade, or perhaps they just didn’t want him landing with a rival.

Either way, by April, Johnson was in Cleveland, signing a one-year, $1.17 million ‘prove-it’ deal—a far cry from the $10+ million he once made. Now, he’s stuck in another AFC North cold-weather circus, this time with four QBs battling for the starting job. Johnson’s already picking favorites. “I think they’re going to roll with Kenny,” he said on the Sports and Suits podcast.

But here’s the kicker: He spent his whole career in Pittsburgh and Baltimore—both outdoor, cold-weather teams. So why suddenly refuse to play in 41 degrees? And why sign with Cleveland, where lake-effect snow and December wind chills are basically a tradition? The irony is almost too perfect. If Johnson thought Baltimore was bad, wait until he’s sprinting routes in January at Huntington Bank Field, where the wind howls off Lake Erie and the bleachers are half-empty by the fourth quarter. Maybe those “ice cold” legs should’ve thought that through. Or maybe, just maybe, this was never about the weather at all.