The Sports Xchange

The Baltimore Ravens signed strong safety Will Hill to a two-year contract on Thursday.

The deal replaces the one-year, $1.54 million tender he signed as a restricted free agent in March. He would have become an unrestricted free agent next year but now is signed through 2016.

“I wanted to be a Raven,” Hill told the Baltimore Sun. “This tells me what the organization thinks of me.”

Hill became a starter at midseason last year, displacing former first-round pick Matt Elam. With Elam missing this season with a torn biceps, Hill will start from Week 1 opposite free safety Kendrick Lewis.

The deal is a minor gamble by the Ravens, considering Hill is a three-time offender of the NFL’s drug policy. The New York Giants had released him due to those issues, and he served a six-game suspension at the start of last season.