The Baltimore Ravens are adding a new weapon to their passing offense and special teams after signing former Buffalo Bills wide receiver and punt returner Deontay Harty to a contract. Harty’s contract with the Ravens is for one year and $1.29 million, according to his Spotrac profile.
Harty, who was born and bred in Baltimore, will have little trouble adjusting to his new football environment. The 26-year-old Harty is coming off a one-year stint with the Bills in the 2023 NFL season, where he had 150 receiving yards and a score on 15 receptions and 21 targets.
However, the Bills employed him as a special teams weapon. While he only featured in 15% of the Bills’ offensive snaps last season, Harty, who went undrafted in 2019, played in 17% of special teams snaps. Harty returned 26 punts in 2023 for 323 yards and one score. That lone score came in the fourth quarter of the Bills’ 21-14 comeback win over the Miami Dolphins on the road in Week 18.
“I blacked out,” Harty stated after that game, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN). “I can’t explain what happened. I’d just noticed a crease. I struck it. And the next thing I knew, I was free.
Harty’s arrival in Baltimore fills a void left by the departure of versatile weapon Devin Duvernay, a two-time Pro Bowler, to the Jacksonville Jaguars during NFL free agency. In 2023, the Ravens finished first in the NFL overall with 417 total punt return yards, owing to Duvernay and Tylan Wallace, who had 290 and 127 punt return yards, respectively. Wallace is still with the Ravens and will likely share the brunt of the punt return duties with Harty, who led the league in 2019 with 338 punt return yards while with the New Orleans Saints.
After not seeing his name get pulled off the board in the 2019 NFL Draft, Harty received a deal with the Saints as an undrafted free agent. He took full advantage of the opportunity, making the final cut for the 2019 NFL season and became a Pro Bowler and First-Team AP All-Pro selection in his first year in the league.
Harty, who played collegiate football for Division II football team Assumption Greyhounds, suited up with the Saints until the 2022 season. After his tenure with New Orleans, he signed a two-year contract with the Bills in 2023 but was released last March as a cap-clearing casualty.
Fans react to Harty’s deal with the Ravens
Several fans have also reacted to this under-the-radar signing by the Ravens, who finished 13-4 in 2023 and reached the AFC Championship Game.
“Welcome to Baltimore @tayynation1 !! 😈🏈,” posted X (formerly Twitter) user @TheFlockRundown.
“We lost a return ace, but gained a return ace. Hopefully he becomes the next Jacoby or Je-Lew especially under the new rules,” said @BraggingRtsSpts.
“Ravens drafting a wide receiver in the First Round update??” wondered @LaMVPRutschman after learning of the Harty signing.
From @ibluebeatle: “Big upgrade from Duvernay. Love this signing”
“Ravens fans out here crying about Deonte Harty without looking at the big picture. He’ll definitely be mostly used for the new rules on kick returns. It’s literally just like why the steelers got Patterson. #Ravens #RavensFlock,” opined
@jamjenkx.
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