The Baltimore Ravens plan to sign OC Todd Monken to a contract extension, according to ESPN. The 58-year-old has had a lot to work with in Baltimore but has presided over a top offense since his hiring. Last season, the Ravens finished first in yards and third in points scored. A year earlier, they finished sixth and fourth, respectively. Over those two years combined, they rank second in both categories.
One of the key reasons the Ravens hired Todd Monken was to maximize their passing game. Previous OC Greg Roman was not living up to that. Over the past two seasons, Lamar Jackson has played some of his best football. Not just in an all-around sense, but also as a passer. He won the league’s MVP award in 2023 and may do so again this year.
Under Monken in 2024, Lamar Jackson went 316-of-474 for 4,172 yards and 41 touchdowns to just 4 interceptions. He led the league in yards per attempt and touchdown percentage, as well as quarterback rating. And he still rushed for 915 yards, becoming the NFL’s all-time leading rusher at quarterback.
Still, the Ravens continue to fall short, even after switching out Greg Roman for Todd Monken. In 2023, they had a first-round bye and reached the conference finals. This season, they were the third seed, losing in the second round to the Bills. Jackson expressed his frustration after the loss, responsible for two of their three turnovers himself.
The Ravens, of course, have the same problem as the Bills—the Kansas City Chiefs. One or the other, if not both, has lost to Kansas City in four of the past five postseasons. The Bills have beaten the Ravens twice in that span only to lose to the Chiefs in the following round. Now Todd Monken has to get them over that last hump after finally cracking the Steelers.
Truthfully, the Ravens’ biggest issue on offense is unforced errors. They have had discipline issues when it comes to penalties, and they have been plagued by bouts of turnovers and drops. Despite their three turnovers, Monken’s offense was still on the verge of tying with the Bills. It was only a dropped two-point conversion by their most reliable receiver, TE Mark Andrews, that prevented it.
A year ago, the Ravens fell to the Chiefs in the conference finals. This year it was the Bills’ turn, but it would have been interesting to see how far Baltimore had come. Monken and company fell to Kansas City in the season opener, 27-20, despite totaling 452 yards of offense.
It is because of these things that Jackson’s Ravens teammates believe his winning a Super Bowl is inevitable. It does seem like Monken has helped unlock something in him as a passer. Even if he isn’t perfect, he does more than enough to put his team in position to win. If the Ravens can continue surrounding him with more talented targets, maybe they will get over that hump. Or maybe Patrick Mahomes will just keep beating everybody.
