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          Trent Richardson's opportunity with Ravens could be his final one in NFL

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          Richardson gets a chance with Ravens (2:23)

          ESPN NFL Insider Phil Savage breaks down whether running back Trent Richardson, who was out of football in 2015, has a realistic chance of making Baltimore's roster. (2:23)

          • Jamison Hensley, ESPN Staff WriterApr 18, 2016, 06:45 PM
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              Jamison Hensley is a reporter covering the Baltimore Ravens for ESPN. Jamison joined ESPN in 2011, covering the AFC North before focusing exclusively on the Ravens beginning in 2013. Jamison won the National Sports Media Association Maryland Sportswriter of the Year award in 2018, and he authored a book titled: Flying High: Stories of the Baltimore Ravens. He was the Ravens beat writer for the Baltimore Sun from 2000-2011.
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          The Baltimore Ravens have given running back Trent Richardson an opportunity when they signed him Monday. This could represent his final one to make it back in the NFL.

          The No. 3 overall pick in the 2012 draft has a meager career average of 3.3 yards per carry and is on his fourth team in four years. He worked out for several teams before last year's regular season began but no one signed him. And he was out of football until the Ravens showed interest.

          For a player who was once drafted six spots ahead of Luke Kuechly, this has the feel of one last chance to prove he can hit the right holes, break tackles and become an impact runner. Running back is a position where NFL teams are constantly looking for younger backs who have less wear and tear.

          But, let's be clear, the Ravens have given him an opportunity. They have not given him a guaranteed spot on the team.

          If anything, the numbers are against Richardson making the Ravens in 2016. He has to crack a running back group that returns its leading rusher from the past two seasons (Justin Forsett), two recent fourth-round picks (Buck Allen and Lorenzo Taliaferro), another discarded Browns runner who has a head start on the Ravens' system (Terrance West) and a young back who can contribute as a kickoff returner (Terrence Magee). And this list could grow if Baltimore decides to draft a running back for the third straight year.

          Of the six backs now on the roster, it's likely only half make it to the 53-man roster in September. That's not particularly good odds for a running back like Richardson, who has failed to stick with his previous teams.

          In September 2013, the Browns traded Richardson to the Colts for a first-round pick because he lacked explosiveness. In March 2015, the Colts waived Richardson after he was fined multiple times for being three pounds overweight and suspended for failing to notify them that he would miss a walk-through session the day before the 2014 AFC Championship Game.

          Then, last August, Richardson was part of the Raiders' first round of cuts in the preseason.

          "He was really close. Just didn’t quite make it for us," Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said at the NFL owners meetings. "I was really pulling for him. He’s a good young man. He came a long way in our offseason. I think if we just had a little more time. It was unfortunate, when he entered camp, he had an infection. He got sick right before he came to camp, and it kept him from starting the way he wanted to start. But he closed a lot of ground. I’m pulling for him.”

          The Ravens really have nothing to lose in signing Richardson this offseason. But, for Richardson, if he doesn't make the most of this opportunity, he could lose out on his last chance to make it back in the NFL.

          ESPN Staff Writer Rob Demovsky contributed to this report.