If you're itching to watch football and you'd like to see what some former Ravens are up to, you should tune into the new Alliance of American Football (AAF).
The new league, founded by Charlie Ebersol and Bill Polian, debuted this weekend on CBS, the NFL Network and elsewhere. The Ravens are well represented with a dozen players on the eight teams.
The most recognizable names are safety Will Hill III, quarterback Josh Woodrum and running back Trent Richardson, but there are others that will definitely make Ravens fans say, "Oh yeah, that guy!"
Hill was a two-year starter that made two memorable Monday Night Football plays with a pix-six of Drew Brees in New Orleans in 2015 and a "kick-six" in Cleveland in 2016.
Woodrum became a fan favorite during the 2017 preseason when he gave Ryan Mallett a run for the backup job to Joe Flacco. He was also in Ravens training camp last year.
Richardson is a former No. 3-overall pick (2012) who flamed out in Cleveland, Indianapolis and Oakland before the Ravens gave him one last shot to get his NFL career on track during the summer of 2016. Injuries once again bit Richardson and he didn't make the team, then bounced to Canada.
Now they're all continuing to play professional football again, and likely looking for a back door into the NFL once again. They had a good start this weekend.
Hill started and had seven tackles as a starter for the Orlando Apollos. Starting for the Salt Lake Stallions, Woodrum went 10-for 22 for 103 yards with one touchdown and one interception before leaving with a hamstring injury. Richardson had 23 carries for 58 yards and two touchdowns for the Birmingham Iron.
Linebacker Steven Johnson, who spent the entire 2017 season with the Ravens as a veteran special teams player, led the Arizona Hotshots with seven tackles and had an interception.
Here are some highlights:
Former Ravens coaches Mike Singletary and Rick Neuheisel are head coaches in the AAF with the Memphis Express and Arizona Hotshots, respectively. Lori Locust, who was a training camp intern last year, is coaching with the Birmingham Iron, and ran into Ravens defensive tackle Michael Pierce.
