OTL: On John Harbaugh’s Confusing Post-Baltimore Comments

Three months ago today, Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Biscotti made the difficult decision to relieve 18-year head coach John Harbaugh of his duties.

A change was necessary after the team finished the 2025 season with an 8-9 record, which marked the third losing season of the Harbaugh era and the first since 2021.

“It’s the big picture,” Biscotti said to the media a week after making his decision. “We want the Ravens to succeed. I felt it was the right time to make the change. If not now, when?”

It didn’t take long for the Super Bowl XLVII champion to find his next home, agreeing on a five-year deal to become the next head coach of the New York Giants just two weeks after his departure from Baltimore.

The writing was on the wall after Harbaugh’s final season with the Ravens started on a sour note. The team blew a 15-point lead to the Buffalo Bills to lose 41-40 in Week 1, which tied the sixth largest blown lead in franchise history.

Fast forward 17 more weeks, and Baltimore was facing the Pittsburgh Steelers, fighting for their playoff lives in the league’s final regular season game.

Under the lights, the team blew its 28th double-digit lead of the Harbaugh era and saw their postseason dreams tragically slip out of reach after rookie kicker Tyler Loop shanked a 44-yard game-winning field goal.

It was a fitting end to an extremely disappointing season in Baltimore and it was the nail in the coffin that ended Harbaugh’s decorated tenure as the Ravens head coach.

Though, Harbaugh doesn’t seem to think so.

“I took a lot of pride in what we did. I took a lot of pride in this season,” Harbaugh said of his final season in Charm City in a recent appearance on Pardon My Take.

“Honestly, as a coaching staff,” he added, “it might’ve been our best job this year coaching this team.”

Quite the surprising stance, especially considering the underwhelming results.

Baltimore won its second Super Bowl in franchise history and netted 12 playoff appearances in 18 seasons under Harbaugh, so it is very difficult to see this past season, which ultimately triggered his firing, as even close to his best season.

One could argue that it was actually his worst, given the context.

After a series of offseason additions that included Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander, first-round safety Malaki Starks, and veteran wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, Baltimore entered the campaign as the betting favorites to win the Super Bowl.

They were poised for greatness.

Instead, they started the year with a 1-5 record, the worst start the team has had to a season since 2015 when they began 1-6. Baltimore allowed 398 points across the 2025 campaign, the second-most in the Harbaugh era.

Last season also marked the second time in his coaching tenure where the Ravens ranked outside the top 12 in both offensive and defensive yards per game. Ironically enough, the only other time that occurred, Baltimore was crowned Super Bowl champions.

Is that Harbaugh’s basis for his assessment?

Because there is not another line of reasoning he could use to make logical sense of his conclusion.

To his credit, however, the season was not without adversity.

Baltimore lost Pro Bowl defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike to a season-ending neck injury in just the second week of the season, a major blow to an already weak pass rush. The team also saw its two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson miss some time amid their 1-5 start.

But, that’s what separates elite coaching staffs—their ability to adapt.

Kyle Shanahan, future Hall of Fame head coach of the San Francisco 49ers, saw a league-leading $95 million in cap space lost to players spending time on the various injury lists.

What did the 49ers do last season? They won 12 games and knocked off the reigning champion Philadelphia Eagles on the road in the first round of the playoffs.

Obviously, circumstances vary around the league and injuries are an extremely tough aspect of the game, but they will never have the ability to excuse poor coaching.

Harbaugh and his staff showed an unwillingness to make necessary adjustments, the most notable example being at offensive guard.

Daniel Faalele and Andrew Vorhees ranked 48th and 52nd respectively in Pro Football Focus’ offensive grading metric among 70 qualified guards.

They were below average, yet Harbaugh showed no eagerness to give third-round rookie Emery Jones Jr. a shot.

And those management failures proved ruinous, as Baltimore’s offensive line finished 27th in unit pass blocking efficiency, per PFF.

Yet, after a season that cost him his longtime job, Harbaugh’s influence on his players has not seemed to waver.

Since taking over in New York, four former Ravens have made the transition alongside Baltimore’s winningest coach in franchise history, a testament to the respect he still commands in the locker room.

That list includes young tight end Isaiah Likely, All-Pro punter Jordan Stout, All-Pro fullback Patrick Ricard, and former undrafted safety Ar’Darius Washington. Former Ravens wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has also publicly shown strong interest in playing under Harbaugh once more.

Likely, drafted by Baltimore in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft, is expected by Harbaugh to become the Giants’ next breakout star.

Or, at the very least, he will see a sizable playing time boost from his days in purple.

“He’s gonna bring a lot to the table,” Harbaugh told reporters at the NFL league meetings a week ago. “He’s a talented football player. He’s a playmaking football player. He’s gonna make plays for us.”

“I know how he plays the game,” he added. “So you try to kind of create a vision for a player. What do you think they’re capable of doing? And one thing that we have always tried to do is see what players can do.”

Are you sure you have always tried to do that, John?

Where was this Likely that you speak of in Baltimore?

Because the Likely that Ravens Flock got to watch was featured on just 269 offensive snaps in the 2025 season. The 25-year-old tight end has never received more than 340 offensive snaps in a season as a Raven.

In 2025, Likely actually saw career lows in targets (34), passing snaps (238) and receiving yards (307), despite playing in 14 games.

You could argue Baltimore’s crowded tight end room, which featured former Pro-Bowler Mark Andrews and polished blocker Charlie Kolar, was preventing Likely from making an impact.

But, the former fourth-round selection led the Ravens in passer rating when targeted in 2023 (152.5), and finished the next two seasons fifth and third in the stat among the team’s pass catchers.

So, why did he not crack the team’s top three in target share in a single season?

Harbaugh has the answer.

“I’m certain he’s gonna be able to put up the numbers,” he said of Likely’s future in New York. “That wasn’t a part of the thing in Baltimore, just because of the supporting cast, so to speak.”

High praise for a supporting cast that saw a tight end (Mark Andrews) eclipse more than 600 receiving yards just once since 2023.

Harbaugh appears to have a clear vision for New York’s latest pass-catching addition, though that vision seemed absent when the two were paired in Baltimore.

And that inconsistency is ultimately the undoing that has defined the bitter end to a tenure in Baltimore that was two years short of lasting two full decades.

Players still believe in Harbaugh, though.

How could they not? He established a winning standard in Baltimore, one that the team’s new head coach Jesse Minter hopes to meet.

And despite everything, he deserves support from Ravens Flock for the remarkable tenure he made as the team’s head coach. Baltimore earned a Lombardi Trophy and made three conference championship appearances under Harbaugh.

Harbaugh’s legendary 18-year run, which saw him win a franchise-high 180 regular season games, will always hold a special place in the heart of Baltimore.

But, as he begins his next chapter, the Giants are seemingly headed down the same path in recent years that saw Harbaugh struggle to match his confident voice with on-field results.

Or, a change of scenery could be just what the doctor ordered as the future Hall of Fame head coach has the chance to develop a young New York core that is headlined by quarterback Jaxson Dart, wide receiver Malik Nabers, and edge rusher Abdul Carter.

Only time will tell.

The post OTL: On John Harbaugh’s Confusing Post-Baltimore Comments appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2026/04/06/out-to-lunch/harbaugh-confusing/