Diontae Johnson Claimed by Ravens After Texans Exit; Not Eligible for NFL Playoffs

Having already mastered the art of accumulating compensatory picks in the NFL draft, the Baltimore Ravens found a new way to potentially add an extra selection next year.
Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Ravens claimed Diontae Johnson off waivers from the Houston Texans to potentially give the team a comp pick in 2026.
Schefter noted Johnson, who will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, is ineligible to play for the Ravens in the playoffs. This marks the fourth different time Johnson has changed teams this season and his second stint in Baltimore.
Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans announced on Tuesday that Johnson was being waived while the team is in the midst of preparing to play the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Round on Saturday.
"Unfortunately, with Diontae it didn't work out," Ryans said Tuesday. "We're on to the Chiefs."
Johnson started this season with the Carolina Panthers after being acquired in a March 2024 trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was traded to the Ravens, along with a 2025 sixth-round draft pick, for a 2025 fifth-round pick in October.
After appearing in four games with the Ravens, Johnson was waived on Dec. 20. He was claimed by the Texans three days later. It seemed like his role would increase after Tank Dell suffered a dislocated knee and torn ACL in Houston's Christmas Day loss to the Ravens.
Johnson wound up playing a total of 38 snaps between Week 18 and the wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers. He caught three passes for 24 yards in those two games with the Texans.
Since the NFL implemented the comp pick system in 1994, the Ravens' 56 picks awarded are the most in the league. There are a total of 32 compensatory picks given out annually, with teams eligible to receive them if they have more qualified free agents lost than gained in a particular year.
The picks are awarded between Rounds 3 and 7, with the league using a formula that includes a player's average annual salary, snap count and postseason awards to determine where the pick falls.
Comp picks have been expanded to include teams that have had minority coaches or executives hired as head coaches or general managers by other teams. Those picks are also included at the end of third round.
Given how far Johnson's stock has fallen this season, any comp pick the Ravens end up receiving will likely be closer to the end of the 2026 draft than the middle. But every pick has value, especially for an organization as smart as the Ravens have been for decades.