ExtremeRavens Posted December 3 Posted December 3 It’s that time of the year in the NFL. With just over a month left in the regular season, the rumor mill for head coaching jobs will soon be in full churn. Three teams — the New Orleans Saints, New York Jets and Chicago Bears — have already begun the search after firing their coaches during the season. Todd Monken, who is in his second year as the Ravens’ offensive coordinator and the architect of the league’s top unit, will draw plenty of interest. But the 58-year-old isn’t worried about that at the moment. He’s focused on more imminent concerns. The Ravens (8-5) are coming off a 24-19 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in which the offense struggled to finish drives. It was also the second loss in three games for Baltimore, which fell 1 1/2 games behind the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers and to sixth in the AFC. “I don’t deal with it,” Monken said Tuesday about the speculation surrounding suitors who could be potentially interested in his services. “I don’t deal with it because it’s got nothing to do with the here and the now, and nobody really knows anyways.” What is obvious, though, is how good Baltimore’s offense has been since Monken’s arrival before the 2023 season. Last year, quarterback Lamar Jackson posted career highs in passing yards and completion percentage and went on to be named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player for the second time in his career. The Ravens also finished fourth in offensive defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA), sixth in yards per game, fourth in scoring, eighth in red-zone touchdown percentage, went 13-4 and reached the AFC championship game. Statistically, they’ve been even better this year. Through 13 weeks, Baltimore is second in offensive DVOA, first in yards per game, third in points and first in red-zone scoring. Jackson, until recently, was on pace to become the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 4,000 yards and run for 1,000 in the same season. He might still reach those marks despite his rushing totals dipping lately. All of which will undoubtedly have Monken interviewing for head coaching openings around the league again. Last season, Monken, whose lone head coaching job was with Southern Mississippi from 2013 to 2015, interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Chargers and Carolina Panthers. Though Monken will turn 59 in January — the average age of coaches entering this season was just 47.7 years old — he could be a popular candidate again down the stretch of this season. Given what he’s done elevating Jackson’s game to another level, Chicago, where the Bears drafted quarterback Caleb Williams first overall earlier this year, is one locale where his name has been bandied about. New York is another. The Jets were previously interested in Monken in 2019 following his stint as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator before they hired Adam Gase. Other teams, including the New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars, are also among the organizations with coaches on the hot seat, and Monken’s name will soon begin to percolate and circulate. Not that he has any interest in talking about any of that now, even if others do. “I don’t control that,” Monken said. “All I control is the job I have here. That’s the most important thing, is us winning here and scoring points. Because if you don’t worry about that, then you don’t have a job here. Then the other stuff doesn’t happen. “The idea is right now, our players, how we get better this week, and again, playing winning football. That’s what we’re paid to do here. The rest of it takes care of itself.” Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. View the full article Quote
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