ExtremeRavens Posted 23 hours ago Posted 23 hours ago It’s been one week since Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti fired coach John Harbaugh, and since then he has made all the right moves. He is ahead of the proceedings, first by announcing last Tuesday that the Ravens were firing the embattled coach, one day after three NFL coaches were dismissed on “Black Monday.” Then the following Tuesday, Bisciotti held a news conference, his first since 2022. Wow. Bisciotti, 65, finally pulled back his cloak of invisibility to the media and fans instead of waiting for their usual pilgrimage to Jupiter, Florida, with team president Sashi Brown, general manager Eric DeCosta, vice president of player personnel Ozzie Newsome and Harbaugh meeting annually. Oops, sorry about that. Harbaugh is gone. Anyway, the Ravens are moving forward and Bisciotti has stepped up. He could have procrastinated and kept both Harbaugh and fans dangling for another week, but he made the announcement, which was timely. For him to hold a news conference, too, that’s mind-boggling and downright earth-shattering. Now, we’ll see where the Ravens will go from here, but at least Bisciotti has taken charge. If it was Dallas owner Jerry Jones, the Ravens might be in trouble, but at least Bisciotti hired Harbaugh, who lasted an unprecedented 18 years. That is a statement within itself, especially since the average span of an NFL head coach is around three years. The Ravens will end up interviewing about 20 candidates, including offensive coordinators Klint Kubiak (Seattle), Kliff Kingsbury (formerly Washington) and Matt Nagy (Kansas City) and defensive coordinators Anthony Weaver (Miami), Robert Saleh (San Francisco) and Jesse Minter (Los Angeles Chargers). Of course, the show stopper during Tuesday’s news conference was Bisciotti being asked about coach Mike Tomlin, who stepped down after 19 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday. The response was colorful, and even though there are reports that Tomlin, 53, isn’t coaching next season, the Ravens should have interest. Tomlin is a fighter, and Pittsburgh beat Baltimore twice this past season to win the AFC North. But I like Bisciotti being in control. He admitted to a shake down while interviewing current Ravens last week before firing Harbaugh, and that was the right move. Bisciotti did the same thing after the 2007 season when he fired then-coach Brian Billick, as he interviewed players such as Hall of Famers Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. Bisciotti said that he spoke with star quarterback and two-time Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson about Harbaugh’s situation last week, but he treated Jackson much like he did Lewis in 2007. They have opinions, but no control. Veterans on the team feared Harbaugh in his first year in 2008 because he was tougher than Billick, who had light training camp practices and virtually no contact near the end of the season. Remember, Hall of Fame left tackle Jonathan Ogden retired in June a month before Harbaugh’s first training camp. Top cornerback Chris McAlister signed with New Orleans one year after playing for Harbaugh. The Ravens were not “team harmony.” Bisciotti made the same promise to Jackson as he did to Lewis in 2007. “A lot of say, but he has no power. I have the power,” Bisciotti said of Jackson. “They have opinions and I want them all. I care about my players very much, but I can’t give them power.” A lot of the media has focused on building this team around Jackson, but that would be wrong. It’s all about balance. Teams in the NFL exploit weaknesses. The best teams don’t always win the Super Bowl, but teams usually win because they have the least amount of weaknesses. Memo to DeCosta: Go build up the interior lines. The Ravens didn’t have a consistent pass rush, which is why they were ranked No. 30 in pass defense, allowing almost 250 yards per game. They couldn’t protect Jackson, who also couldn’t decide whether he wanted to run or pass as he was sacked 45 times and pressured on several other occasions. Somewhere, somehow, DeCosta has to start investing in first-round draft picks on the offensive and defensive lines. Bisciotti talked a lot about instincts Tuesday, and he was right. The Ravens were a mess. They had no offensive identity until the final three games, and the defense, especially the secondary, was abysmal. His instincts, though, are a key. In 1983, he invested $5,000 with his cousin, Jim Davis, to buy a place over a bakery in Baltimore to develop Aerotek, which is now the largest privately owned staffing and recruiting company in the United States, located in Hanover. Today, Bisciotti’s net worth is an estimated $8.5 billion, according to Forbes. Much has been said about the way Bisciotti fired Harbaugh through a phone call as Harbaugh was driving home, but I don’t care. That’s so stupid. They spent 18 years together. I remember how former Ravens owner Art Modell fired coach Ted Marchibroda after three seasons. Modell cried the entire time as he slow walked back to his office, which was only 20 yards away from Marchibroda. Bisciotti and Harbaugh had a special relationship. I watched as Bisciotti and Harbaugh would meet after games in Bisciotti’s private suite at M&T Bank Stadium. Bisciotti expressed anger Tuesday at those on social media who would criticize his coach after losses, and pointed out that it was a team effort, not just on Harbaugh. If you really want to see their friendship, go look at their parting statements once Harbaugh was terminated. Does that appear to be anger, or a coach who was not appreciative of being named a head coach after coming from a special teams background? It was Bisciotti who spoke to Harbaugh days after the firing about which NFL vacancy the coach should pursue. “We are friends and we will remain friends,” Bisciotti said. Bisciotti made the right move. His instincts were correct, and so was the decision to speak to the media on Tuesday. After having the best record in the NFL in 2023, the Ravens lost to Kansas City in the AFC championship game, and then to Buffalo in the divisional round last season. The Ravens failed to make the playoffs this season after losing twice to Pittsburgh, including the regular season finale that decided the AFC North title. So far, his instincts have been good. It’s already been a good offseason. Have a news tip? Contact Mike Preston at epreston@baltsun.com, 410-332-6467 and x.com/MikePrestonSun. View the full article Quote
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