On Saturday, the Baltimore Ravens surprised the NFL community by cutting running back Justin Forsett from their roster. But, two days later, the Ravens resigned him again.
The decision by the Ravens to release Forsett caught Baltimore fans by surprise because of his productivity on the field. During the 2015 NFL season, Forsett made significant contributions to the team's offensive line by averaging 4.2 yards per carry. Also, given the team's current set if inexperienced running backs, cutting Forsett was really a bad move by the Ravens.
But, on Monday, everything turned out well after Forsett confirmed that he has been re-signed by the Ravens. Just like the team's first move, bringing him back just two days after he was released seemed a bit odd for fans of the Ravens.
However, based on what the Baltimore organization was able to do after his departure from the lineup, it seems the move to cut him in the first place was mutually beneficial for both parties. As noted by CSN Mid-Atlantic, releasing Forsett on Saturday provided the Ravens the opportunity to retain Matt Elam and Carl Davis while meeting the league's requirements of cutting down the lineup to a 53-man team.
Even though Davis and Elam are currently injured, they are still vital to the team especially since they are expected to return to the active roster later on in the season. But, for the meantime, both of these players are on injured reserve. Placing them on this list then gave the Ravens the chance to re-sign Forsett as well as Devin Hester while still falling within the 53-man bounds.
As for Forsett, he probably did not feel any hard feelings for the Ravens' official move to release him since he most likely already knew what the team's plans are even before he was cut. After all, even when he became a free agent, he didn't approach other teams to sign him.
Furthermore, he didn't lose any money after re-signing with Baltimore. Under his new contract, which he signed on Monday, he was able to gain a two-year deal with the team that's worth $6 million, which is the same amount he was entitled to receive in his original contract.
Aside from this, he also has a chance to get an incentive bonus of $100,000 if he is able to surpass the 641 rushing yards he made last season.
