Ravens Fire John Harbaugh: What's Next?
In a move that is both surprising and unsurprising, the Baltimore Ravens have officially fired John Harbaugh. After 18 seasons, his tenure is officially over. He'd been coasting on a long-ago Super Bowl title, but the Ravens have been highly successful under him. Now, they're each going their separate ways, sparking questions for both. Where is Harbaugh headed? Who can the Ravens turn to now?
What's next for the Ravens?
The Ravens have an interesting decision to make. Does the John Harbaugh firing mean it's time to tear it all down? It's very possible that the new coach, depending on who it is, brings in an entirely new staff. Is GM Eric DeCosta safe? Do they do the unthinkable and trade Lamar Jackson?
The latter is highly unlikely, so they will look for a coach who can do one of two things. Either they'll bring in an offensive coach who can really unlock Jackson and get him back to MVP level while keeping him healthy, or a defensive coach who can improve that side of the ball.
They're not likely to take a flier on a young, first-time head coach since they're kind of in a Super Bowl window now. That makes Klint Kubiak and Davis Webb unlikely options. Kliff Kingsbury is suddenly available, and he represents an intriguing option.
Brian Flores also makes sense. His defenses are always incredible, and he has head coach experience. Kevin Stefanski, Brian Daboll, Vance Joseph, Jeff Hafley, Mike McCarthy, Bill Belichick, Matt Nagy, Robert Saleh, and Arthur Smith could all come up as options.
The most interesting one, however, is Todd Monken, the Ravens' OC. They made a huge mistake by not promoting Mike Macdonald from internal DC to head coach after the 2023 season. He's been incredible as the coach of the number one NFC seed Seattle Seahawks, and the Ravens are sitting at home.
They like Monken, and he may end up getting some head coach interviews. Could the Ravens just promote him and call it a day? It's possible, though not the most likely option. The Ravens also probably fired Harbaugh at the wrong time. There have been reports of some Ravens players being unhappy for a few years now.
Since they missed their window with Macdonald, they should probably have fired Harbaugh last year. They did have some success and made the playoffs, but again fell short. The previous head coaching candidates were a whole lot more inspiring than this crop, so the Ravens may have some serious regrets.
What's next for John Harbaugh?
John Harbaugh should have very little trouble finding a new job. Sure, he went a long time without much playoff success and seemingly wasted Lamar Jackson's prime, but he's 180-113 as a coach. Even in said playoffs, he's 13-11.
Early reports state that some teams might even prefer Harbaugh to their own coach, specifically those with uncertain futures. Mike McDaniel, for example, is safe for now, but he's not on sturdy ground. The Miami Dolphins could make a lot of sense. The same is true of the Cincinnati Bengals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But beyond that, it wouldn't be a surprise if the former Ravens coach interviewed for the current openings. Those include:
- Atlanta Falcons
- Arizona Cardinals
- Cleveland Browns
- Las Vegas Raiders
- New York Giants
- Tennessee Titans
Retread coaches aren't as popular anymore, but given Harbaugh's track record and the surprising nature of his exit from the Ravens, he likely will not miss a ton of time as a coach. In fact, he's probably going to get another head coaching job instead of regressing to a coordinator like many fired coaches.
