The Ravens are trading for Carolina Panthers wide receiver Diontae Johnson, beefing up their high-octane offense as part of a reported late-round draft pick swap.

The Ravens will send a 2025 fifth-round pick for Johnson, who leads Carolina with 30 catches for 357 yards and three touchdowns this season, and a 2025 sixth-round pick, according to ESPN. The Panthers will also reportedly cover much of Johnson’s 2024 salary, an important consideration for a Ravens team that is tight on salary cap space.

Johnson, who played his first five seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers, was held out of Carolina’s loss Sunday to the Denver Broncos amid trade interest. He has struggled with drops over his career, and has two this year, but the 28-year-old entered Week 8 with one of Pro Football Focus’ better rates of creating separation as a receiver.

Johnson struggled to produce with Bryce Young at quarterback, but stepped up after backup Andy Dalton took over in Week 3, dramatically improving his per-play production (0.64 yards per route run to 2.17 yards per route run) and per-game receiving production (8.5 yards per game to 53.8 yards per game), according to TruMedia.

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Quarterback Lamar Jackson has led one of the NFL’s best attacks, but Johnson’s arrival gives the offense more viability in spread looks. The Ravens have played just 28.1% of their snaps in 11 personnel (one running back, one tight end and three wide receivers) this season, a sharp drop-off from last season. With more three-receiver looks, the Ravens would likely see a higher rate of light boxes (six or fewer defenders), creating even more opportunities in the run game for Jackson and Derrick Henry, as well as Justice Hill and perhaps Keaton Mitchell.

The NFL’s trade deadline is Nov. 5, and the Ravens could stay active as they look to upgrade a disappointing defense.

And as the trade for Johnson shows, general manager Eric DeCosta has a penchant for making in-season acquisitions to bolster his roster. He traded for cornerback Marcus Peters in 2019, defensive end Yannick Ngakoue in 2020 and inside linebacker Roquan Smith in 2022.

This story will be updated.