Change came to Baltimore this offseason in a way it hadn't in nearly two decades. After 18 seasons under John Harbaugh, the Ravens enter 2026 with an entirely new coaching staff, led by first-time head coach Jesse Minter. Rather than assembling a staff full of longtime friends and former colleagues, Minter took a different approach, one built around a clear philosophy he's described simply as finding leaders, connectors and teachers. Looking at each hire individually shows exactly what that philosophy produced.

Jesse Minter, Head Coach

Minter arrives in Baltimore after building a reputation as one of the league's top defensive minds, most recently as the Chargers' defensive coordinator. At 42 years old, he's a first-time head coach, and notably, he'll continue calling defensive plays himself in Baltimore rather than handing that responsibility off entirely. What makes his approach to staff-building stand out is how little he leaned on his own personal network. Of his key hires, three of the most important, offensive coordinator Declan Doyle, defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, and offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford, had never worked with Minter before this year. That's a real departure from how most first-time head coaches build a staff, and it signals Minter prioritized fit and talent over comfort and familiarity.

Declan Doyle, Offensive Coordinator

At 29 years old, Doyle becomes the youngest offensive coordinator in the NFL, the same age as his own starting quarterback, Lamar Jackson. What makes him a compelling hire isn't just his age, it's what he already accomplished before getting here. He arrives after coordinating a top-10 offense with the Chicago Bears under head coach Ben Johnson, a proven system that produced results immediately. Sports Illustrated has already flagged Doyle as one of the assistant coaches most likely to break out in 2026, a notable projection for someone calling plays for the first time at this level.

Doyle has already begun building a working relationship with Jackson, telling reporters the two spoke for over an hour during his interview process just to see if they were compatible. He's been direct about his vision for the offense as well. "The way we want our offense to look, the non-negotiables are that we are physical, we're detailed and we're explosive," Doyle said after his hiring. He's also been candid about being the youngest voice in the room throughout his career. "I've always been too young for every job I've ever had," Doyle said. "And what I've noticed is it really doesn't matter. Knowledge is power, and if they feel like you can help them, if they feel like you can help accelerate their career and our goals as a team, guys are willing to listen, to be taught and to grow and to work together."

Anthony Weaver, Defensive Coordinator

Weaver's hire brings a familiar face back to Baltimore, and what makes him special is exactly that continuity. This marks his third stint with the organization, having previously held defensive roles with the Ravens from 2021-23 after beginning his NFL playing career there as a second-round draft pick at defensive end in 2002. Few coordinators walk into a building already understanding its culture, its expectations, and its locker room the way Weaver does. He spent the past two seasons as the Miami Dolphins' defensive coordinator and enters his 15th season overall as an NFL coach, giving Minter a coordinator with real experience calling his own plays, even though it's his first time doing so specifically for Baltimore.

Anthony Levine Sr., Special Teams Coordinator

Levine's promotion carries real sentimental weight in Baltimore, and it's a hire built on more than nostalgia. A longtime Ravens safety and special teams standout during his playing career, he steps into his first job as an NFL special teams coordinator after years building toward the role within the organization. What makes him valuable is the same thing that makes Weaver valuable: institutional knowledge. Levine understands what it takes to win in Baltimore because he did it himself as a player, and his hire reflects Minter's broader approach of blending outside additions with figures who already understand the culture.

Israel Woolfork, Quarterbacks Coach

Woolfork's hire is one of the more specifically tailored additions on the entire staff. He spent the past three seasons as the Arizona Cardinals' quarterbacks coach, where he oversaw Kyler Murray's return from a torn ACL, a comeback that culminated in arguably Murray's best statistical season in 2024. When Murray went down again in 2025, Woolfork helped backup Jacoby Brissett post career-high numbers, averaging 240.4 passing yards per game, eighth-most in the NFL that season. That track record with a dual-threat, athletic quarterback made him an obvious fit to work with Jackson, whose game shares real similarities with Murray's blend of arm talent and mobility.

Beyond the results, Woolfork has built a reputation for connecting with players on a personal level. Murray himself described the relationship in blunt terms during Woolfork's time in Arizona: "He's really receptive. He'll shoot you straight but also can hear you out and understand what I'm seeing and what I'm feeling." For a Ravens offense that depends heavily on its quarterback's rhythm and trust in the system, that kind of relationship-first coaching style is exactly what Baltimore was looking for in replacing outgoing quarterbacks coach Tee Martin.

The Offensive Line and Skill Position Coaches

Dwayne Ledford, Offensive Line Coach & Run Game Coordinator

If there's one hire that should get Ravens fans genuinely excited about protecting Lamar Jackson, it's this one. Minter didn't hold back when he brought Ledford in. "We are excited to welcome Dwayne, who is regarded by many as the league's top offensive line coach," Minter said. "He will be a difference-maker for our offense, and I look forward to seeing the impact he'll have in both the running and passing games."

That kind of praise usually invites skepticism, but Ledford's track record actually backs it up. He spent five seasons as the Atlanta Falcons' offensive line coach, adding run game coordinator duties for his final two years there, and the results were dramatic. Under his direction, Atlanta's offensive line jumped from 27th in the NFL in Pro Football Focus' rankings in 2021 to 5th in 2022 and 4th in 2023. The Falcons finished with a top-10 rushing offense in each of his final three seasons in Atlanta, powered by a scheme built around a wide zone running system and what Ledford himself describes as an emphasis on "speed off the ball" up front. His departure from Atlanta wasn't about performance, it came after the Falcons hired Kevin Stefanski as their new head coach, who brought in his own offensive line coach, Bill Callahan, as part of that transition.

Ledford's background gives him a level of credibility that's hard to fake. He played six NFL seasons as a center for four different franchises, the 49ers, Jaguars, Panthers and Browns, after going undrafted out of East Carolina in 1999. That playing experience, paired with 14 years of college coaching across seven different programs before he ever got his first NFL coaching job, gives him a rare combination of hands-on playing knowledge and decades of teaching experience. Now entering his 22nd season overall as a coach, Ledford inherits a Ravens line that already has real foundational pieces in tackles Ronnie Stanley and Roger Rosengarten, and a group that led the NFL with 5.3 yards per carry last season despite allowing Jackson to be sacked 36 times. If Ledford's Atlanta track record translates to Baltimore, that sack number is exactly the kind of problem he's built a career out of solving.

Marcus Brady joins as pass game coordinator entering his ninth season as an NFL coach, having served as the Chargers' passing game coordinator the past two seasons and as the Indianapolis Colts' offensive coordinator before that, giving him real play-calling experience even in a support role. Eddie Faulkner takes over the running backs room after seven seasons with the rival Steelers, where he worked with backs like Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell and was regarded as one of the most well-respected position coaches on Pittsburgh's staff, even serving as interim offensive coordinator there in 2023. Keary Colbert steps in to coach wide receivers after spending the past three seasons in the same role with the Broncos.

Zack Grossi, Tight Ends Coach

Grossi's story stands out from the rest of the staff for reasons beyond football. He enters his eighth NFL season overall, most recently serving as Denver's pass game specialist, and his hire reunites him with two coaches he already has deep history with, having spent two years working alongside Doyle and three years working with Lombardi in Denver. What makes Grossi's addition notable beyond the on-field fit is the story behind it: he was diagnosed with a yolk sac tumor in October 2024, underwent chemotherapy, and returned to the sideline cancer-free. He hasn't formally coached tight ends since serving as a graduate assistant in 2013, though he did coach the position at the Senior Bowl in 2023, making this as much a projection hire as it is an experience-based one.

Joe Lombardi, Senior Offensive Assistant

Few names on this staff carry more built-in credibility than Lombardi's. He's the grandson of Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi, and his own résumé stands on its own: a Super Bowl champion as part of the 2009 New Orleans Saints staff, and an offensive coordinator with three different NFL franchises, the Detroit Lions, Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos, across parts of six seasons. Throughout his career, Lombardi has worked closely with and mentored some of the league's top quarterbacks, including Hall of Famer Drew Brees, Pro Bowler Justin Herbert, and Bo Nix, who set a career-high passing mark under his tutelage in Denver.

At 54 years old, Lombardi gives 29-year-old Doyle a proven veteran voice to lean on in the building, even as Doyle runs the offense day to day. The two have already worked together twice before, with the Saints in 2019-20 and with the Broncos in 2023-24, giving their working relationship real history rather than something being built from scratch this offseason.

The Defensive Coaching Room

Mike Mickens, Pass Game Coordinator & Secondary Coach

Mickens might be the hire fans should be most excited about once they see his actual track record. He spent the last six seasons at Notre Dame, and under his coaching, the Fighting Irish built one of the best secondaries in the country, ranking third nationally in pass defense in 2023 and fourth in 2024. That's not a small accomplishment. Sustaining elite pass defense at that level for multiple seasons in a row is exactly the kind of coaching Baltimore needs after a Ravens secondary that returned four former first-round picks last season, safety Kyle Hamilton, safety Malaki Starks, and cornerbacks Nate Wiggins and Marlon Humphrey, and still surrendered the second-most passing yards in the league.

His player development history speaks for itself. At Cincinnati, he coached Sauce Gardner into the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year and a perennial All-Pro cornerback for the Jets. At Notre Dame, he developed cornerback Benjamin Morrison, safety Xavier Watts and cornerback Leonard Moore into standout defensive backs, and he already has direct experience working with Baltimore's own Kyle Hamilton, having coached him for two seasons while both were at Notre Dame. For a Ravens secondary loaded with former first-round talent that underperformed last season, having a coach who's already developed several of the exact caliber of players already on the roster is about as direct a fit as a hire can get.

Minter didn't hold back describing what makes Mickens special. "Even as a relatively young coach, Mike is one of the best coaches I have been around," Minter said. "He is an elite communicator whose competitive spirit and relationship building will push our secondary to outstanding levels." That competitive spirit traces back to his own playing career. Mickens played cornerback at Cincinnati from 2005-08, where he left as the program's all-time leader in interceptions with 14 and interception return yards with 296, earning All-Big East and All-American honors along the way before a knee injury changed the trajectory of his path to the NFL. He was drafted in the seventh round by the Cowboys in 2009, and after a brief playing career, transitioned into coaching in 2011.

What ties his whole résumé together is the relationship with Minter himself. The two first crossed paths when Minter served as a graduate assistant during Mickens' final two seasons playing at Cincinnati in 2007-08, then reunited as co-workers on the same defensive staff at Indiana State in 2012. This marks Mickens' first NFL coaching job after 15 years exclusively at the collegiate level, but given his track record of building elite pass defenses and developing NFL-caliber talent, it's the kind of hire that looks less like a risk and more like Minter cashing in on a relationship he's trusted for nearly two decades.

Lou Esposito takes over the defensive line room, rounding out a defensive staff built to support Weaver's scheme with coaches who bring both scheme knowledge and position-specific expertise.

Why This Staff Makes Sense

What stands out most about Minter's approach is the balance he struck between fresh, ascending talent and proven institutional knowledge. Younger hires like Doyle, Woolfork and Grossi bring energy, modern scheme ideas, and hunger to prove themselves. Veterans like Lombardi, Weaver and Faulkner bring championship pedigree, coordinator-level experience, and a track record of developing players at a high level. That combination gives a first-time head coach and a first-time playcaller in Doyle real support structures throughout the building.

There's also real connective tissue running through the staff that speaks to how deliberately it was constructed. Doyle previously worked with Lombardi and Grossi in Denver. Brady worked directly with Minter on the Chargers' staff over the past two seasons. None of these hires happened by accident, and the overlapping relationships throughout the staff suggest a coaching structure built for real cohesion, not just a collection of accomplished individual résumés.

It's worth noting how different this approach is from what Baltimore has grown used to. Over Harbaugh's 18 seasons running the program, he was sometimes criticized for leaning heavily on former colleagues and familiar faces when building out his staff. Minter's group looks different by design. His top three coordinators, Doyle, Weaver and Levine, collectively bring just a handful of years of play-calling experience between them, a notably green group at the top compared to what Baltimore has had in recent memory. But Minter offset that inexperience deliberately, surrounding his young coordinators with proven veteran voices like Lombardi and Ledford, giving the staff real depth even where the top titles are new.

For a Ravens team looking to bounce back after missing the playoffs last season, the coaching overhaul represents a genuine reset. A first-time head coach who plans to keep calling his own defensive plays, a 29-year-old offensive coordinator getting his first shot as a play-caller, a quarterbacks coach with a proven track record developing dual-threat passers, and a veteran offensive mind with Super Bowl and Hall of Fame pedigree all in the same room gives Baltimore a coaching group that's simultaneously youthful, ambitious and grounded in real experience where it matters most.