ExtremeRavens Posted January 29 Posted January 29 The Ravens’ offseason was barely 24 hours old when the first domino fell. The Los Angeles Chargers are expected to hire Baltimore’s director of player personnel Joe Hortiz as their next general manager, according to multiple reports Monday. The news came on the same day that players cleaned out their lockers at the team’s Owings Mills facility after the Ravens fell to the Kansas City Chiefs, 17-10, in Sunday’s AFC championship game. The Chargers, who finished fourth in the AFC West after going 5-12, fired their previous general manager, Tom Telesco, along with coach Brandon Staley late in the regular season. In joining Los Angeles there is also a level of familiarity after the Chargers hired Ravens coach John Harbaugh’s brother Jim to be their coach, wooing him from the University of Michigan, where he won a national championship this season. Hortiz and the Ravens have yet to confirm the reports. Hortiz, 48, has been with the Ravens since 1998 and in his current position since 2019. Given the success of many of the Ravens’ draft picks and free agent signings, Hortiz has been a hot job candidate after helping oversee college and pro scouting and serving as general manager Eric DeCosta’s top personnel evaluator. Hortiz began his career with the Ravens as a scout and rose through the organization under former general manager and Pro Football Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome and then DeCosta. During his tenure in Baltimore, the Ravens won two Super Bowls, during the 2000 and 2012 seasons, and have won seven AFC North titles since 2003. This year, the Ravens finished with the NFL’s best record at 13-4 and were the top seed in the AFC. Hortiz inherits a Chargers roster already stocked with talent, including quarterback Justin Herbert, safety Derwin James and receivers Keenan Allen and Mike Williams. Still, Hortiz’s work will be cut out for him with the Chargers having missed the playoffs eight of the past 10 years and four of the past five. The Chargers also finished 28th in total defense this season, something Hortiz should be able to help remedy given his success in Baltimore, where the Ravens became the first team in NFL history to lead the league in sacks, takeaways and points allowed per game this season. This story might be updated. View the full article Quote
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