ExtremeRavens Posted Friday at 12:00 PM Posted Friday at 12:00 PM Life moves fast in the NFL, especially when the games slow, or more specifically because they do. Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti fired John Harbaugh – the winningest and just the third coach in team history – on Jan. 6. On Thursday, less than eight days later, Harbaugh agreed to become the 24th coach of the New York Giants. By the time Bisciotti spoke with reporters this past Tuesday, Baltimore had also already interviewed eight candidates, with at least another eight or nine to come before the approaching weekend is over. From there, the Ravens will take their list of 15 to 20 and narrow it to four or five finalists. Because Bisciotti, who will turn 66 in April, prefers at this stage of life to treat owning the team, in his words, more like a hobby than putting in the 70 hours a week he used to early in his ownership he leaves the day-to-day to general manager Eric DeCosta, executive vice president and former general manager Ozzie Newsome and team president Sashi Brown. So when it comes to who will be the Ravens’ next coach, the billionaire who resides in Jupiter, Florida, will leave that decision mostly to that triumvirate. “When they call me in for these five [finalists], I’m going to already know why they love them,” Bisciotti said. “I’m going to come back, and I’m going to give just them my honest opinions, my reservations – if there are any – on individuals that may be a red flag that they didn’t see. So, I would hope that when I spend a lot of time with these people, that I might unearth some things; which I think I’m really good at unearthing some details that maybe others missed. I think that I’d like to feed that into them, and if it changes their top five, then great. And if it doesn’t, I want these guys to be partners.” In terms of a timeline on that decision, DeCosta said he views the process like a three-week NFL draft. With that as a backdrop, it’s likely the Ravens would come to their decision sometime around the conference championship games. The rest of that coach’s staff would then be filled out sometime on either side of the Super Bowl on Feb. 8. Who that coach will be is, of course, the biggest question Baltimore is facing this offseason. It’s also one of many paramount ones. Here are the five most significant questions Bisciotti’s braintrust must answer in the weeks and months ahead. Who will be the next coach? One of the more insightful things Bisciotti said is that he is not scared off by a coach who has a losing record, noting that the circumstances around the situation have to be taken into account. “I could say I’m disqualifying coaches with losing records, but I think you have to remember that they were the hottest coaches in their cycle, and they got jobs and they got tough jobs, and I don’t think we have a tough job,” he said. “When Tony Dungy said, ‘This is a bad decision,’ and, ‘Good luck finding someone better than John [Harbaugh].’ I literally wanted to call Tony and say, ‘Do you remember John 18 years ago? How can you take our success and use it against me while we’re out trying to find the next John Harbaugh?’ That’s impossible. “So, if I hire an offensive coordinator or a defensive coordinator, none of you can say anything about his poor record the first time he was a head coach. And so, it’d be very easy for me to try and avoid those ex-head coaches because they have losing records, but I’m telling you, we are keen to their circumstances, and we won’t let their first shot at a job influence us negatively for this one.” Of the at least 10 coaches Baltimore has formally interviewed, six are former head coaches: Vance Joseph, Kevin Stefanski, Matt Nagy, Kliff Kingsbury, Brian Flores and Jim Schwartz. Of them, only Nagy doesn’t have a losing record, going 34-31 during the regular season and 0-2 in the playoffs in four seasons leading the Chicago Bears from 2018 to 2021. It’s also notable to remember that Harbaugh was a relative unknown when Bisciotti hired him (albeit as his second choice behind then-Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett) from the Philadelphia Eagles, where he was a long-time special teams coordinator and spent one season as defensive backs coach. Who could be this year’s version of that? Rams pass game coordinator Nathan Scheelhaase, 35, has percolated around the league for his behind-the-scenes work of game plan design, among other things, and has a good record under Sean McVay’s Los Angeles coaching tree, which includes the Green Bay Packers’ Matt LaFleur, Cincinnati Bengals’ Zac Taylor and to an extent the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Liam Coen. Only one of McVay’s former assistants (recently-fired Atlanta Falcons coach Raheem Morris) hasn’t made the playoffs as a head coach. Another name that has risen among league cognoscenti is 30-year-old Denver Broncos pass game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Davis Webb. He has certainly helped in the development of Broncos second-year quarterback Bo Nix, but would also be easily the youngest coach in the NFL. Where are the Ravens and QB Lamar Jackson in contract negotiations? Lamar Jackson is under contract for two more seasons. The bad news is that his salary cap number is due to skyrocket to $74.5 million in 2026 and 2027, which would chew up nearly 25% of the team’s total cap space. Because of that, there’s an urgency for Bisciotti and company to get an extension done by the start of the new league year on March 11. “The urgency of that matters to me because we’ve got free agents and I don’t want to go into free agency with that hanging over our head,” Bisciotti said. “And I made that clear to Lamar and I think he was very appreciative of my stance and hopefully willing to work with Eric and not get this thing dragged out into April like the last time. It’s very hard for him to build a roster when that thing is not settled.” If nothing else, there has certainly been a good deal more communication with the quarterback than in the past. Bisciotti spoke to Jackson on the phone the night before he fired Harbaugh. He talked to him after the firing. DeCosta has also spoken with Jackson on multiple occasions. Jackson has also been invited to be a part of the process of hiring the next coach — though Bisciotti made it clear that Jackson has “no power” in that decision. The two sides being engaged is certainly a good sign, and it’s worth remembering that the last time Jackson, who acts as his own agent, made a trade request amid his last contract negotiations in 2023 he only did so as a matter of business tactics. Who will be their next offensive and defensive coordinators? It has already been reported that Todd Monken will join Harbaugh in New York as his offensive coordinator. Defensive coordinator Zach Orr is also not likely to be back after the Ravens’ defense, which was historically great in 2023, took a big step backwards each of the past two seasons. Who replaces each, of course, depends on who the head coach is. Zach Orr struggled as the Ravens' defensive coordinator in 2025, ranking in the bottom 10 of yards allowed. Baltimore's next hire at the position will be important in getting the organization back to the postseason. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) Scheelhaase and Webb could be potential candidates for offensive coordinator if neither lands a head coaching job. It would be a significant promotion for each. Another possibility perhaps would be ex-Miami Dolphins coach Mike MacDaniel, who is widely viewed as one of the more creative minds in the game. Or perhaps former Commanders coordinator Kliff Kingsbury would fit the bill after overseeing quarterback Jayden Daniels’ success in Washington and a college career in which he worked with a few other high-profile quarterbacks, including Patrick Mahomes. Who they turn to on defense is perhaps more interesting and also possibly more difficult to pinpoint. Schwartz has a terrific track record as the Browns’ defensive coordinator, but he’s probably not leaving Cleveland in a lateral move, unless whoever their new coach wouldn’t want to bring him back, which wouldn’t make a lot of sense. The same scenario would likely be true for other defensive coaches Baltimore has already interviewed for its head job. If the Ravens hire a defensive coordinator or former head coach with a defensive background as their head coach, perhaps that coach brings someone from his staff with him, or identifies someone among Baltimore’s current assistants. If it’s an offensive-oriented coach, that opens things up even more, though it’s unlikely to be someone who changes Baltimore’s defensive scheme significantly. However it plays out, the Ravens will already know who their coordinators will be when they hire the head coach with DeCosta, Newsome and Brown looking at it as a package deal. Which of its own free agents will Baltimore keep; which outside ones will it pursue? The Ravens have two-dozen free agents, 19 of which are unrestricted. They also have what DeCosta called a “nice little nest egg” in terms of money they carried over this year that should free them up a little more than usual when it comes to retaining some of their own players while shopping around the league for what DeCosta dubbed “big-ticket” items. Whom could they look to keep and whom could they look to target? Among their own, three-time Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum figures to top the list of priorities. He’s undersized and has had some neck issues, but he checks so many of Baltimore’s boxes on and off the field. Having continuity by retaining the guy who snaps the ball to Jackson is also important, and there’s no obvious candidate to replace him on the roster. Kansas City Chiefs center Creed Humphrey, a 26-year-old two-time All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowl selection, tops the market at $18 million a year, so it will cost DeCosta significant capital to keep Linderbaum, who will likely want to earn close to that on an annual basis. Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum, shown arriving for the first day of training camp in 2025, is among the free agents Baltimore would like to re-sign. (Karl Merton Ferron/Staff) The good news for Baltimore is that other players it could look to keep should cost much less. Among them are All-Pro punter Jordan Stout, cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, safety Ar’Darius Washington, fullback/tight end Pat Ricard and tight end Charlie Kolar. Outside the building, the Ravens could look to make a splash in one or two of a few areas. With a lack of sacks and quarterback pressure by the defense this past season, their biggest need is at outside linebacker/edge. Veteran Kyle Van Noy isn’t likely to be back after struggling this year and Dre’Mont Jones probably doesn’t give them the level of juice they’re seeking. The next biggest focus will be the offensive line, particularly at both guard spots. Bisciotti pointed out how the offensive line didn’t improve this season and while offensive line coach George Warhop will get some of the blame, some of it will fall on the players. On defense, the Ravens signed ascendant Travis Jones and veteran John Jenkins to extensions this season, both important deals with Nnamdi Madubuike’s future unclear because of a season-ending neck injury. But they need more up front and figure to add to the group through the draft and free agency. Lastly, cornerback and wide receiver will be needs as well. It seems likely the Ravens will move on from veteran cornerback Marlon Humphrey after he had a poor year in 2025 and will turn 30 this summer. Mercurial wide receiver Rashod Bateman was nearly traded to the Dallas Cowboys last offseason and could be on the block again after a big drop in targets and production and what is a team-friendly contract that he signed only last offseason. A fresh start somewhere else might do both parties good. Whatever moves the Ravens make, though, will undoubtedly depend on what they can do with Jackson’s contract. “Well, it would certainly give us more flexibility, cap-wise, roster building,” DeCosta said. “A deal with Lamar would give us the ability to be more active, to re-sign some more players on the team and to potentially go after a couple of big-ticket items. We haven’t traditionally done that. We’ve been more reserved when it comes to free agency. We like the amount of draft picks we have this year. We do have money to go out and re-sign guys – free agents that we have right now; [they are] some good players, certainly – but having more money would be helpful, for sure.” What positions will the Ravens target in the draft? As mentioned, for as much talent as the Ravens’ roster had this season, there are a plethora of needs. Building through the draft is also an organizational philosophy that isn’t changing with the ouster of Harbaugh. “I still believe the best way of building the team is through the draft, because I’ve seen Ozzie do it so many years and do it at a Hall of Fame level,” DeCosta said. “We will participate in free agency, and we will trade for players. We’ve done that. It has to be right player, right price. If there’s an elite Hall-of-Fame-type talent that’s available that we think can come in and be – as Steve likes to call them – game wreckers, we look at that. “But to do that for a really, really good player and have to pay the exorbitant price and also give up all the draft pick capital, that can set your franchise back for a long time as we’ve seen.” This year, the Ravens have 10 draft picks, which includes the 14th overall pick, their highest position since 2022. That year, they used the 14th pick on safety Kyle Hamilton, which has obviously worked out. Some picks haven’t panned out so well, be it 2024 third-round selection Adisa Isaac, 2023 third-rounder Trenton Simpson, or, most notably, 2022 second-round pick David Ojabo. But Bisciotti has made it clear that DeCosta, who will be leading his eighth draft this April, isn’t going anywhere and that he has been happy with his “singles and doubles and home runs” among some whiffs. Among Baltimore’s biggest needs that it will address in the draft: Offensive and defensive line, pass rusher, cornerback, wide receiver, running back and quarterback. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1. Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta, shown Tuesday at a news conference, hopes to retool Baltimore's roster through the NFL draft and free agency. (Kenneth K. Lam/Staff) View the full article Quote
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