‘Junkyard Dog’ Justice Hill Could Be In for a Big Year in Baltimore

After battling for his role within the Ravens’ offense since 2019, Justice Hill enters the 2025 season in perhaps the best spot he has been in as he goes into his sixth year as a pro.

The Ravens didn’t play their starters in their preseason-opening win against the Colts last week. Although Derrick Henry is Baltimore’s starting running back, the franchise also had Hill sit the game out because at this point, they know what they have in the former Oklahoma State rusher — and they like it.

“I call him the junkyard dog because he does everything for us,” said third-year Ravens running back coach Willie Taggart. “And he does it at an elite level. Justice knows his role, and he plays his role to the best of his ability. He’s been great — not just as a player but as a teammate and bringing other guys along. I think he helped Derrick adjust last year when he came into a new team, and Justice was right there with him. I personally say he was a big part of helping Derrick with his success and integrating with the team.”

Hill ran for 228 yards and a touchdown on 47 carries last season for the Ravens. None of those were career-highs, but he still made a bigger impact than any of his previous years on the field because of what he was doing in the Ravens’ passing game.

Hill caught 42 balls on 51 targets for 383 receiving yards and three scores through the air in 2024. He ranked sixth on the team in yards from scrimmage with 611. That trailed only Henry, Zay Flowers, Lamar Jackson, Rashod Bateman and Mark Andrews among Ravens — which is not bad company to have.

Some of Hill’s increased role could be credited to a former OSU coach — Todd Monken.

Monken took over play-calling duties for the Ravens in 2023 after winning a national title at Georgia in 2022. Natural development would’ve also helped here, but take a look at Hill’s average numbers for a season in the three years before Monken got to Baltimore compared to the two seasons since Monken has called plays:

Hill is part of an offense that led the NFL in total yards and yards per play last last season, and he sounds confident his team is going to continue to succeed at moving the ball in 2025.

“The longer you’re into something, the longer you’re learning something, you just get more and more comfortable,” Hill said. “I think Monk is more comfortable calling certain plays. Lamar is more comfortable checking to certain things. And then Monk is also good at putting all the guys in the right spot to maximize their abilities.

“It’s just going to be exciting to see because as we continue to add into the offense, you can tell everyone is getting a lot more comfortable and a lot less thinking. Whenever you’re out there and don’t have to think, you can just play at elite level, elite speed, elite swiftness and have elite execution.”

Hill played three seasons at Oklahoma State (2016 to 2018). He broke the program’s freshman rushing record in 2016 when he ran for 1,142 yards — the most of any freshman in the country that season.

He ran for 3,539 yards and 30 touchdowns in his three years as a Cowboy, which rank seventh and 10th on OSU’s all-time list, respectively.

The Ravens took Hill in the fourth round (113th overall) in the 2019 NFL Draft. He signed a two-year extension with the franchise last September that is worth $6 million — a sign that the Ravens viewed the Booker T. Hornet as part of their future.

“I think I’ve always had that confidence,” Hill said. “I just felt like I needed some opportunity to show that, but, yeah, with them extending me, it was obvious that they trusted in me and trusted the things that I was doing. For me, I just wanted to continue to improve on the things that they paid me for, whether it’s blocking, catching, making plays — that’s what they brought me here, drafted me here to do. And that’s why they still have me here today. I’m just gonna continue to do those things at a high level.”

Henry’s thunder was brought to Baltimore to compliment Jackson’s lightning last season, but Hill proved when he got the rock that he is also capable of creating a spark.

“Justice is just, he’s what you’re looking for in a football player and a teammate,” Taggart said. “He’s a heck of a football player. You saw last year, when he got the ball, he made the best of his opportunities when they come, and that’s what you want from guys. When that opportunity comes, you step up and take advantage of it, and Justice has done that every single day.”