ExtremeRavens Posted yesterday at 12:11 AM Posted yesterday at 12:11 AM The Ravens fired coach John Harbaugh on Tuesday, ending his 18-year tenure with the team. It’s a surprising move, given how successful he was in Baltimore and his strong relationship with ownership and the front office. Here’s how pundits reacted to the news that Baltimore will make a coaching change in 2026: Tony Kornheiser, ESPN “I’m stunned by this,” he said on “Pardon the Interruption.” “Steve Bisciotti is not a quick-trigger guy. … I’ll say this, if John Harbaugh wants to work again, he can have an open job in 30 seconds. Thirty seconds. He has everything to recommend him.” Nick Wright, FOX Sports “I have tried all year long to point to publicly available things to demonstrate what I knew was a real rift between Lamar and John Harbaugh … if it’s one or the other, you’ve got to go with the star quarterback,” Wright said on “First Things First.” “That’s my read.” Chris Broussard, FOX Sports “It was time … he’s a good coach, but 18 years. After they won that Super Bowl, he missed the playoffs four out of the next five years,” he said on the same show as Wright. “And then Lamar popped. It wasn’t going well Lamar’s rookie year, and then he put him in for Flacco, and the rest is history. They became a contender, but … I thought they were an undisciplined team. … I look at a lot of that as coaching.” Robert Mays, The Athletic “Here’s why I think you can talk yourself into staying the course,” Mays said on “The Athletic Football Show.” “It’s because, in my opinion, it hadn’t been stale for that long. As I think about the overall trajectory of the Ravens over the last few years, I think they were on an upward trajectory for most of last season. … As stagnant as they felt this year, I wasn’t sure 17 games of stagnation and not having it be a multiyear thing was worth pulling the cord on this.” Jordan Schultz “An interesting ‘what if’ in all of this is that Baltimore had Mike Macdonald on staff — and he’s now doing wonders in Seattle,” the NFL insider posted on X. “The Ravens went 13-4 and made the AFC Championship Game the year Macdonald left, so there was never a realistic scenario of moving on from John Harbaugh. But you do wonder if there are second thoughts today: Macdonald is 38, Harbaugh is 63.” Torrey Smith, former Ravens WR “Harbaugh is a hell of a man and coach,” he posted on X. “He had a great run in Baltimore. He will EASILY be the top coach in the market. Great corporations make tough decisions to move on from qualified leaders when the ultimate goal isn’t met. It’s just business.” Kevin Clark, ESPN “When was the last time a job as desirable as *this* Ravens job was open? Packers after McCarthy?” he posted on X. Mina Kimes, ESPN “The Ravens instantly become the most appealing HC job in football,” Kimes posted on X. “I would *strongly* consider Brian Flores if I were them.” Bill Barnwell, ESPN “Harbaugh’s pretty obviously the best coach on the market and the Ravens job is pretty obviously the best job available,” Barnwell posted on X. Sam Monson, Pro Football Focus “Funniest thing that could happen: Houston annihilates Pittsburgh, Tomlin gets fired in 6 days. PIT hires Harbaugh and BAL hires Tomlin,” he posted on X. Aaron Schatz, FTN Fantasy “Given his ability to manufacture pressure with blitzes, the Baltimore roster would be amazing for Brian Flores,” he said on X. “I don’t know them personally but Lamar Jackson and Tua Tagovailoa do not seem like similar dudes.” Dan Orlovsky, ESPN “The Arizona Cardinals should hire Harbaugh tonight,” the analyst posted on X. Barstool’s Dan “Big Cat” Katz “Need Harbaugh on the Browns just to keep the Tomlin rivalry,” the Barstool personality joked on X. Tom Fornelli, CBS Sports “The Chicago Bears are the No. 2 seed and the Baltimore Ravens fired John Harbaugh in the same season the Bears lost to a Ravens team with Snoop Huntley at QB. What a league,” he posted on X. Glenn Clark, WBAL Radio “The only celebration I’m interested [in] is celebrating the outstanding tenure of John Harbaugh. It was time, yes. But he has more than earned incredible appreciation,” he posted on X. Steve Wyche, NFL Network “John Harbaugh is one of the few coaching candidates that has the gravitas to pull a Liam Coen, and get the GM-in-place bounced, if he feels that is needed,” he said on X. Peter Schrager, ESPN “Having not spoken to him yet or being given any confirmation that he does, indeed, want the job … I’d think John Harbaugh would be a perfect fit in New York with the Giants. A QB, several pass rushers, a number 1 wide receiver, 2 young RBs, cap space, and a top 5 pick,” he said on X. Have a news tip? Contact Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin. View the full article Quote
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