To hear him speak about offensive coordinator Todd Monken throughout this offseason, you might be led to believe that former Baltimore Ravens coordinator Greg Roman kept QB Lamar Jackson locked in a room until kickoff and instructed him to do exactly what he was told.
That’s certainly not the case—at least I would imagine so—but the theme throughout the offseason for the Ravens offensively has been about the passing game and Jackson’s greater authorship thereof, along with his new weapons. Perhaps his most effusive praise for Monken came during Baltimore’s most recent preseason victory last night.
“I’ve been sending him plays of stuff I’ve been seeing, and he’s been putting them in practice, and they’re working”, he reportedly said during the broadcast, via Charean Williiams for Pro Football Talk. “It’s like, I’m glad he’s listening to me, man”.
The natural inclination will be to wonder if there is an intentional contrast in his remarks. Is he implying that Roman did not listen to him? It does seem at the very least that he wanted more control of the offense that he wasn’t getting.
Currently without a job, Roman served at tight ends coach and assistant head coach during Jackson’s rookie season in 2018. He took on a larger role once Jackson took over the starting job. Credited for building the offense around Jackson’s unique capabilities, he was named the offensive coordinator in 2019 and held that post for the past four seasons.
During that time, the Ravens had unparalleled success on the ground with the most rushing attempts, rushing yards, and yards per attempt in the league. Their 2,194 rushing attempts were 190 more than the next closest team. They rushed for 11,566 yards, the Tennessee Titans the closest at 9,448. They were the only team to average 5.0 yards per attempt or better at 5.3. The only mark they did not top was rushing touchdowns, ranking fifth with 77.
But you don’t have a first-round franchise quarterback to lead the league in rushing. Jackson wants to have more on his shoulders—his arm, rather—and the Ravens front office with the move to hire Monken seems willing to give it to him.
“The meeting room — I wish you guys could see the meeting rooms,”, he said of Monken. “He’s full of expressing what he’s got going on in his mind. His mind is everywhere. It’s like, ‘I love you as a coach right now.’ You know, I’m grateful for him”.
We’ll see what the product on the field ends up looking like. Jackson did not play in the Ravens’ preseason opener, with Josh Johnson and Tyler Huntley getting most of the work as they battle for the backup job—a battle Huntley is clearly winning.
