Ravens Coaches' Youthful Energy Is Resonating With Players
The energy surrounding the Ravens under new Head Coach Jesse Minter and his staff is palpable. There is a youthful enthusiasm and relatability about the coaches that has resonated with players.
The most obvious example was the viral video of Minter tearing down the house by rapping Eminem's "Lose Yourself" at the team dinner in Minnesota a couple weeks ago.
"After 18 years with John Harbaugh as the Ravens head coach, a new and needed energy shift has arrived," Yahoo! Sports’ Jori Epstein wrote. "That's by design. It's not a knock on Harbaugh, whose culture is now animating his New York Giants locker room. But sometimes messages lose their edge — as parents and children across time have seen — and disciples are more willing to listen to a new source.
"Enter 43-year-old Minter to replace the 63-year-old Harbaugh, and 30-year-old Offensive Coordinator Declan Doyle to take over for 60-year-old Todd Monken (now the Cleveland Browns head coach). A youth movement has arrived in Baltimore. Players noticed even before Minter rapped 'Lose Yourself,' which he figured would resonate despite its 2002 release given Eminem had 'survived the last 10 years on my playlist.' And they're well aware after it."
Veteran cornerback Chidobe Awuzie explained how Minter's mic-drop moment translates to the field.
"For him to end it off like that kind of shows that at the end of the day, he's our leader, but at the same time, he's going through everything we're going through and he's willing to do the things that it takes," Awuzie told Yahoo! Sports. "Some coaches [would] be like, 'Oh no, I'm too big for that.' But [Minter] got up there, turned us all up, had a great time.
"You have a coach that has that energy, it just reinforces all those things that we're trying to get out of the game."
Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver, 46, said: "You could just tell the guys are drawn to just his humanity and vulnerability, and the fact that he is who he is and unapologetically who he is. The guys respect that."
Weaver helped bail out rookie Zion Young by singing Anthony Hamilton's "Charlene." Preceding Minter's performance was Doyle doing a rendition of Drake's "Shot for Me" after he was called to take the mic by wide receiver Zay Flowers.
"Similar to how I call plays, I was thinking about like, 'All right, what are the boys going to know?'" Doyle said. "You watch rookie performances and they're literally all about enthusiasm. And as long as you don't forget the words, and you're enthusiastic and you have energy, you should be fine."
Ravens Are on Pundit's Short List of Teams That Can Win the Super Bowl
The teams that competed in last season's Super Bowl, the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots, did not make the playoffs the year prior. The Patriots, in fact, finished in last in the AFC East with a 4-13 record.
Consequently, hope for hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in February springs eternal for all 32 teams this time of year.
That said, FOX Sports’ Steven Ruiz contends that there are only seven teams with a realistic shot of winning the Super Bowl.
The Ravens were among them. Ruiz ranked the seven teams, and Baltimore came in at No. 3 behind the Los Angeles Rams and defending champion Seahawks.
Ruiz pointed to the new coaching staff as the main reason for believing the Ravens can get over the hump.
"If new Head Coach Jesse Minter can clean up penalties and coverage busts on defense, it will go a long way," Ruiz wrote. "And if new Offensive Coordinator Declan Doyle, who comes over from Ben Johnson's staff in Chicago, can get Lamar Jackson back to his MVP form, Baltimore can regain its place among the AFC's contenders after last year's disappointment.
"The defense will almost certainly be better. Minter, one of the sharpest defensive minds in the sport, got top-10 results out of a Chargers' defense with far less talent than what he'll be working with in Baltimore. The pass rush gets two major boosts with Nnamdi Madibuike returning from injury and Trey Hendrickson joining from the rival Bengals. Depth is a concern, but if this unit is healthy and Minter lives up to the hype, this will be a championship-level defense."
The four other teams who can win the Super Bowl, according to Ruiz, are (in order): the Buffalo Bills, Denver Broncos, Philadelphia Eagles, and Houston Texans.
Ravens Are Outside Top Five in Pundit's Offense Rankings
The Ringer’s Anthony Dabbundo ranked all 32 offenses for this season, and the Ravens came in at No. 7.
Dabbundo said his confidence in the Ravens' offense isn't as high as in previous years.
"You used to be able to ink Baltimore into the top five of any preseason offensive rankings, but the Ravens are entering this season with more questions than usual," Dabbundo wrote. "The Ravens still have a solid rushing infrastructure with Derrick Henry and one of the league's most uniquely talented quarterbacks. But for the first time in years, ranking Baltimore among the NFL's elite offenses requires projecting a rebound rather than relying on recent evidence."
Dabbundo noted that after the Ravens scored 40 points in a season-opening loss to the Bills last year, they ranked 13th in EPA per drive over the rest of the season.
"Quarterback Lamar Jackson missed four games with a hamstring injury and never looked as explosive as a runner after returning," Dabbundo wrote. "His 2025 pressure-to-sack rate was the highest of his career and one of the highest in the entire league. Will a healthier Jackson resemble his pre-2025 self? Or was last season's decline in his rushing efficiency the beginning of an age-related trend? That question will become increasingly prevalent this season and beyond.
"Jackson's mobility has always helped Baltimore's line perform better than the sum of its parts, but having a less explosive version of him would place more pressure on the offensive line in protection and on Jackson to operate the traditional passing game."
Regarding Jackson's mobility, safety Kyle Hamilton said during training camp that "he might have gotten faster."
ESPN Writer Makes 'Bold' Ja'Kobi Lane Prediction
ESPN’s Dan Graziano made a bold prediction for each team this season. He admitted that his prediction for the Ravens, which was about rookie wide receiver Ja'Kobi Lane, isn't really all that bold.
"Don't be surprised if Lane is more than just a training camp wonder," Graziano wrote. "Lane can't be a huge surprise anymore after the hype that surrounded him and his highlight-reel catches during training camp. But inside the Ravens building, people are extremely excited about the 6-foot-4 third-round rookie. He'll likely join Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman on the field when the team goes to three-receiver sets, and his role could expand beyond that.
"Lane has work to do on his game. The Ravens would like him to be a better separator, especially at the line of scrimmage. But they've seen improvement in key areas throughout the offseason, and his size and ability to win 50-50 balls could land him a significant role in Baltimore's offense starting right away his rookie season."
Kyle Van Noy Reportedly Signing With Vikings
Outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy will be wearing purple this season, but it won't be as a member of the Ravens. Van Noy, who spent the past three seasons in Baltimore, is reportedly signing with the Minnesota Vikings.
Van Noy, 35, said earlier this offseason that he planned to play in 2026 and would welcome a return to the Ravens.
Baltimore has a deep outside linebacker room with a strong mix of veterans and ascending players.
