How Justice Hill Became an Integral Part of the Ravens Offense.
When Justice Hill said he was surprised to get a contract extension from the Ravens a couple weeks ago, it wasn’t just because of the timing. It’s also because of his journey. He could have never imagined this three years ago.
Fans know the story of how the 2021 preseason finale at Washington’s FedEx Field altered the trajectory of J.K. Dobbins’ Ravens career. Turns out, that night shaped Hill’s journey, too.
Hill was entering his third year with the Ravens and was coming off a sophomore season in which he touched the ball just 17 times. He was competing for the No. 3 running back spot behind Dobbins and Gus Edwards with a couple of intriguing rookies, Ty’Son Williams and Nate McCrary. A high ankle sprain in the first preseason game wasn’t helping Hill’s chances.
At FedEx Field, there are two different locker rooms. As Hill described it, one for players that were going to make the team and one for players who were not. Head Coach John Harbaugh confirmed he was in the locker room for players soon on their way out.
“It was in the locker room, and Harbs came up to me and was telling me I was about to get cut,” Hill said on “The Lounge” podcast. “So I’m just like, ‘Oh, I guess I’m going to figure something out somewhere else.'”
670 Lounge
669: Justice Hill Talks About His Breakout, Pairing With Derrick Henry, His Remarkable Comeback Story, Battling His Brother & More
Ravens RB Justice Hill joins team insiders Ryan Mink and Garrett Downing to talk about facing his Bengals brother, why he’s playing so well, whether the Ravens’ ground game can keep rolling, how he bounced back from an early-career Achilles injury, and more.
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Hours later, Dobbins suffered a devastating season-ending knee injury. So much for that. Hill wasn’t just back in the team’s plans but in position to have a prominent role. That, however, was short-lived.
A week later, as Hill tried to push back from the ankle injury to get ready to be Edwards’ backup for the season-opener, he tore his Achilles during practice. Not only was his year done; his career was in jeopardy.
The Ravens were already preparing to cut him, and if they did, a fourth-round running back entering his fourth NFL season with very little production on his resume and coming off an Achilles tear probably wasn’t going to be too enticing. Instead, Hill landed on the Ravens’ injured reserve list.
“It was a blessing in disguise,” Hill said. “I was able to be home for my daughter’s birth and be able to be [at the training facility] just the whole season, the offseason, every single day. But yeah, that was a pivot point for me.”
Hill wasn’t too happy his first couple years in Baltimore. He felt like the offensive system didn’t fit his skillset. He wasn’t getting many opportunities. Other young players at his position had passed him, and he was on the cusp of being cut. Hill is a confident guy, but it was wavering.
That year rehabbing his Achilles changed his outlook. He got married and his daughter was born, which gave him new purpose and a renewed drive.
“It’s definitely motivational – going from just a single bachelor to having a family,” Hill said. “That’s the No. 1 thing you want to do – is provide for your family and make sure they’re living a good life. That just shifted my mindset and motivated even more than what I already was to just continue to go about and be great and do things.”
There was another main driver. Hill wanted to show the Ravens that they should have never considered cutting him.
“I ain’t got nothing to lose,” Hill said. “Honestly, that’s just been my mindset ever since I came back. I’m like, ‘Shoot, nobody wanted me here so I’m going to just go ahead and prove everybody wrong.'”
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Shawn Hubbard/Baltimore Ravens Photos
Hill attacked his rehab. The very first day after his surgery, he was back in the Under Armour Performance Center with the training staff, buying into the process. Since he suffered the injury before the regular season even started, he had a long runway to get ready for the 2022 season. There was no rush this time, and he was determined to come back stronger.
Once he was cleared and the doctors told him his Achilles was not going to snap again, he woke up at 5 a.m. every morning to jump rope for 30 minutes to an hour. Hill did two to three thousand jump ropes a day.
“It would be sore as heck, man,” he said. “But I was like, I’m going to keep doing it, just keep going. I was trying to get my spring back.”
When Hill returned to the field the following May, he looked shockingly quick for a player coming off such a major injury. He followed it up with a solid campaign as the backup to Dobbins, Edwards, and, at times, Kenyan Drake, but Hill’s biggest impact was on special teams.
Before last season, the Ravens signed Hill to a new two-year contract. Paired with new Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken, and after another season-ending injury to Dobbins, Hill had his best offensive season yet with 593 total yards and four touchdowns.
That was just an appetizer. With Dobbins and Edwards leaving for Los Angeles, Hill was, for the first time since those seven days before his Achilles injury, the clear No. 2 back entering this season. He’s delivering.
Through the first four games, Hill has been one of the offense’s best players. He’s second on the team in receiving yards (161), just six yards behind tight end Isaiah Likely. He’s averaging a career-high 5.4 yards per carry.
Hill led Baltimore in receiving in last Sunday’s big win over the Bills, including a 19-yard touchdown in which he cooked a linebacker to break wide open. Hill said he has beaten his teammates on that play for two years in practice and has been begging for it to be called in a game.
