Knee-Jerk Reactions: Ravens to Hire Anthony Weaver as Defensive Coordinator

The Ravens have reunited with former player and coach Anthony Weaver, hiring him as their defensive coordinator.

Anthony Weaver has agreed to become the Ravens defensive coordinator, sources say.

— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) February 2, 2026

Our thoughts on the hire…

Rob Shields

The perfect hire.

The DC won’t be calling plays for the Ravens but you needed someone the players like and someone who knows this defense. Weaver worked under Mike MacDonald and Minter runs the same defense.

Very smart guy. Players respect and like him.

As an added bonus, if he ends up leaving for a head coaching job, which almost happened for him this offseason, the Ravens will get compensatory picks in return.

Gotta love every aspect of this hire.

Vermont Raven

I really like the hire.  He is an experienced defensive coordinator that can assist Minter and take some of the load off of him as he adjusts to his new head coaching duties.  This is a big win for Minter and the Ravens.  I am surprised they were able to get him.  I thought he’d have an opportunity somewhere to be a play-calling defensive coordinator.  Always good to have experienced coaches come in to support a new head coach.

Chad Racine

I’m very excited about the hire of Anthony Weaver as defensive coordinator. I would have been happy even if he was hired as the head coach. While their time didn’t overlap, in Baltimore both Minter and Weaver still possess the culture of the Ravens. They have also probably learned from previous mistakes during the Harbaugh tenure. This hire should ease the burden on Minter as a head coach in his first year.

Nick Polinsky

This is another really solid hire from Jesse Minter. Obviously Minter will be calling his own plays, but it always helps to have an experienced defensive coordinator who was widely considered for head coaching jobs around the league.

Weaver was one of the guys heavily in the mix for the Ravens DC job back when Mike Macdonald left Baltimore, but John Harbaugh opted for Zach Orr, which led to a very uncharacteristic two years of Ravens defense. It only seems right that Weaver now holds the spot that many wanted him to fill two offseasons ago.

Chris Schisler

This is a strong hire. The Ravens probably should have never let Weaver go to the Dolphins. He’s a defensive coordinator we know. With Jesse Minter being in charge of the defense, this was not the most critical hire. Getting the right coordinator makes things easier for Minter though so this is a positive. The Ravens are essentially building a fellowship of great defensive coaches. An up and coming defensive coordinator is the head coach. A familiar hire becomes the defensive coordinator. It all points to returning the strength to Ravens defense. There should be no excuse on the defensive side of the ball. If Eric DeCosta builds it, the top 10 defenses should come.

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Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2026/02/02/knee-jerk-reactions/anthony-weaver/