The Ravens will have a new offensive coordinator in 2023 as Greg Roman leaves to pursue other opportunities, according to his agency, Athletes First.
The news broke hours before the Ravens’ 2:30 p.m. Thursday press conference with head coach John Harbaugh and general manager Eric DeCosta, and the Ravens released a statement from Harbough.
“Greg has led the development and success of a record-breaking offense in Baltimore for several seasons,” Harbaugh said. “He’s a great football coach as well as a family man and a person.
“Greg engineered and led our offense to no less than 26 historic NFL and franchise accomplishments. He created an identity for our attack. We are grateful for Greg’s great work and abilities and wish him and his wonderful family the best of luck in the future. “
Roman released a statement thanking owner Steve Bisciotti, Harbaugh, other Ravens organizational leaders, players and fans.
“After visiting with Coach Harbaugh and after snuggling with my family, I decided now was the right time to leave the Ravens so I could explore new challenges and opportunities,” Roman said.
Roman has been the Ravens offensive coordinator since 2019 and has created some of the most successful offenses in franchise history with Lamar Jackson as his signal operator. In 2019, Roman was named the AP Assistant Coach of the Year and Jackson was the unanimous league MVP. When Jackson played, the Ravens had a 39-15 record with Roman.
Roman built a revolutionary offense centered around Jackson’s unreal talent, and Jackson executed it at a high level. In Roman’s four seasons at the helm, here’s where the Ravens offense ranked:
- 2019 – 1st in points, 2nd in yards
- 2020 – 7th in points, 19th in yards
- 2021 – 17th in points, 6th in yards
- 2022 – 19th in points, 16th in yards
The Ravens have never before finished in the top 10 in scoring in back-to-back seasons. Their 2019 ratings were the highest in the franchise.
In 2019, the Ravens had 3,296 rushing yards, breaking the New England Patriots’ mark for most rushing yards in a season, a record that stood for 41 years. Jackson’s 1,206 yards in 2019 are the most ever by a quarterback. From 2019-2021, the Ravens have also rushed for 100 yards in 43 straight games, tying the Pittsburgh Steelers (1974-1977) for the most in league history.
This season, however, the Ravens offense has run into more trouble. Baltimore’s unit got off to a hot start, but slowed when top wide receiver Rashod Bateman was lost to a season-ending foot injury. When Jackson left with a knee injury in Week 13, the offense struggled more. The Ravens have averaged 13.6 points in their last six games without Jackson, including a wild-card playoff loss at Cincinnati.
The Ravens scored 17 points in the playoff loss and the game turned when a goal-line quarterback fumble by Tyler Huntley led to a fumble that was returned for a 98-yard touchdown by Bengals quarterback Sam Hubbard.
The Ravens’ red zone issues were an issue all year as they finished 30th in the NFL. Roman’s innovative rushing scheme once again excelled as Baltimore was second in the league with 160 rushing yards per game, but the passing attack finished 28th.
Baltimore’s offense was always heavy under Roman, but was less effective in the passing game. The Ravens ranked 16th in Football Outsiders DVOA in passing in 2022, 16th in 2021, 17th in 2020 and first in 2019. The Ravens finished 28th in passing yards per play (178.8) this season, 13th in 2021, 32nd in 2020 and 27th in 2019.
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