Continuity is Key

One of the last times Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti spoke to the media, he talked about the importance of continuity.

“If you go through the league, the winning teams are the ones that have the least turnover in their front office and their coaching staffs,” Bisciotti said in 2017. “You just don’t turn things over. You guys would be getting a whole lot more juice if you were down in Tampa. You’re missing their press conference. You’d have more to write about. I’m proud of these guys and I like John as much as I did when I hired him eight years ago. You can’t just turn things over based on your record. I think that just sends you down.”

That’s why it was no surprise the Ravens are working on an extension with coach John Harbaugh, whose contract ends at the end of next season.

The Ravens did not want Harbaugh working on a one-year deal, giving the impression that he is a lame-duck coach, which would have opened the door for other suitors.

And don’t be mistaken, Harbaugh would have plenty of options if he and the Ravens parted ways.

Even though Harbaugh has his critics, he remains one of the most successful coaches in the NFL.

The Ravens have made the playoffs in nine of his 14 seasons. They also won their second Super Bowl championship in 2012.

Harbaugh is 148-96 (.607) (including the playoffs) over his tenure in Baltimore. That ranks fifth among active coaches.

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The Ravens are also a team that has mostly stayed out of the headlines for the wrong reasons under Harbaugh, who runs a tight ship. One of the biggest issues was the Ray Rice domestic violence incident in 2014 and the franchise took swift and decisive action to part ways with the running following the altercation. Harbaugh was forced to address this issue in front of a throng of national media by himself and he handled the questions astutely.

Now, the Ravens are headed into an uncertain offseason and Harbaugh is the best option to guide the team through these uncertain waters.

The Ravens ended the year with 19 players on injured reserve. They also dealt with COVID issues and quarterback Lamar Jackson was limited to 12 games.

The team entered the year with Super Bowl aspirations but finished 8-9 and ended a streak of three consecutive trips to the playoffs. The Ravens ended the season on a six-game losing streak but five of those losses were by a total of eight points despite a roster devastated with injuries.

Harbaugh hired Mike Macdonald as the defensive coordinator after parting ways with Don Martindale. This will ideally bring new energy into the building and give opponents new looks.

The Ravens have 15 unrestricted free agents. They’ll likely look into bringing back fullback Pat Ricard and center Bradley Bozeman, but both of those players might be able to find more lucrative deals elsewhere.

The team also must decide whether to sign Jackson to a long-term contract extension, which is not guaranteed at this point.

Bisciotti is obviously committed to Harbaugh, who has signed five contract extensions since landing in Baltimore.

It’s the Ravens’ way.

“Continuity doesn’t stem from laziness, it comes from confidence and I believe in these guys,” Bisciotti said. “I have a lot of faith that we’ll get it straightened out and I hope we don’t have as many injuries and I hope we have a whole lot more turnovers, and yeah, I think those kinds of differences would get us back to where we want to be.”

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