The Baltimore Ravens made a franchise-altering decision Tuesday, moving on from longtime head coach John Harbaugh. And while the focus will immediately turn to who the next head coach will be, the more important question is what kind of coach he must be — because Lamar Jackson’s peak seasons already gave Baltimore the blueprint.
His three best seasons — 2019, 2020, and 2023 — all came inside the same team formula: a dominant run game, elite defense, and field-position control. If the Ravens want to unlock Jackson again, the next head coach must rebuild that environment, not reinvent the quarterback.
In all three of Jackson’s peak seasons, Baltimore finished first in the NFL in rushing yards. The 2019 Ravens even set the NFL single-season team rushing record with 3,296 yards. That run-heavy identity kept Jackson ahead of the chains and created favorable throwing conditions, which directly fueled his historic MVP efficiency.
Elite defense has also been a requirement — not a luxury — during Jackson’s best years. In 2019, Baltimore ranked third in points allowed and top-five in takeaways according to Pro Football Reference. In 2020, the defense again finished top-10 in scoring and turnovers. In 2023, the Ravens fielded the No. 1 defense in both yards and points allowed, while also leading the NFL in takeaways. Those defenses consistently gave Jackson short fields and allowed him to play aggressively instead of forcing him into constant dropback situations.
Baltimore’s offensive structure also mattered. Jackson’s peak seasons coincided with heavier usage of play-action, RPO concepts, and movement-based designs that simplified his reads and stressed defenses horizontally, as shown by Next Gen Stats. When the Ravens have drifted toward empty formations and static dropback volume, his efficiency has declined.
The blueprint is already written. When Baltimore is a physical, run-first, defensively dominant team that controls field position, Lamar Jackson becomes an MVP-level force. The Ravens do not need a quarterback whisperer. They need a head coach who can rebuild the environment that historically unleashes him.