Kyle Goon: The All-In-One Guide to the 2026 Ravens (to sound like you paid attention during the offseason)

For casual Ravens fans, the moment of truth is arriving. When you’re chatting at the proverbial watercooler with your gridiron-inclined colleagues, what off-the-cuff takes can you offer?

The safe approach for the last 18 years was simply to talk about the head coach. “John Harbaugh is gonna have this team ready” and “John Harbaugh is holding this team back from the Super Bowl” have both been sound clichés for those who don’t fully lock in to football between January and August.

But no longer, my friends. One of the perennially stable NFL franchises made an earthshaking decision to change coaches this January, and Harbaugh is no longer your hero or your punching bag (unless you are a fan of the New York Giants — THE NEW! YORK! GIANTS!).

True, Lamar Jackson, Kyle Hamilton and many other familiar faces are still here, but any conversation about the Ravens — for the first time in a long time — starts with the changes at the top.

Never fear: We’re rounding up all the need-to-know pieces from the offseason that will have you ready for the season kickoff and, more critically, saying smart-sounding things to your coworkers, friends and family leading up to the game. Cram now, coast later — by Sunday, no one will suspect a thing.

The NFL has become a mess of subscriptions and providers. When do the Ravens start the season, and how do I watch?

The Ravens travel to Indianapolis to face the Colts for a 1 p.m. kickoff on Sunday CBS and/or Paramount+.

Tell me about the new coach. Is he going to be different than Harbaugh?

The new coach is 43-year-old Jesse Minter, who comes from the Harbaugh tree. He was a staffer on the Ravens from 2017-20, working primarily with defensive backs. His last job was also working for a Harbaugh. For the last four years, he served under Jim Harbaugh at Michigan and then with the L.A. Chargers. Although his father, Rick Minter, a longtime college coach who is an analyst in Baltimore, is probably his biggest coaching influence, the Harbaughs are high on that list, too.

The most distinct difference you’ll see is Minter calls his own defense. While defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver (another returning former Raven) will be on the sideline, Minter’s defensive play-calling is one of his greatest strengths. With the Chargers, Minter led one of the most efficient pass defenses in the league and finished in the top 10 in spite of having what was widely considered an underwhelming roster.

“Underwhelming” defense sounds familiar. Like how it went for the Ravens last year …

Oh yeah, the Ravens were a hot mess on that side of the ball. They finished 29th in passing yards allowed (4,403) and 28th in sacks (30), and they were split apart by competent offenses such as the Bills, Patriots and Bengals. With a lackluster pass rush, spotty downfield coverage and injuries, it’s hard to pinpoint one thing that made the defense perform dramatically under expectations for coordinator Zach Orr, but all those factors combined like a foul-smelling gumbo.

Another influence for Minter is Seahawks coach (and former Ravens DC) Mike Macdonald, who is coming off a Super Bowl title in Seattle. Although Minter’s defense has some distinctions from Macdonald’s, it is descended from the same school of disguised coverages, creating pressure without a lot of blitzing and limiting explosive plays. The hope is that Minter helps lead a renaissance that brings the defense back to the franchise’s typical high standard.

It has got to be hard to improve the defense without improving the roster. Who did the Ravens bring in?

The most high-profile free-agent signing in Baltimore was Trey Hendrickson, a 31-year-old defensive end who accumulated 61 sacks over five seasons in Cincinnati. Although he is coming off his worst year as a Bengal (4 sacks in just 7 games while dealing with injury), he has a case as the Ravens’ best pure pass rusher in years — since perhaps Terrell Suggs. Hendrickson was technically a Plan B after a trade for Raiders star Maxx Crosby fell through in March for … reasons. But, as far as consolation prizes go, Hendrickson gives the Ravens a legitimate double-digit-sack threat who can win off the edge.

The rest of the defense is familiar, with a few new faces. Fresh off a Super Bowl appearance with New England, Jaylinn Hawkins comes in at safety, allowing the All-Pro Hamilton to operate all over the defense — and perhaps freeing second-year safety Malaki Starks as well. The Ravens’ second-round pick, Zion Young from Missouri, figures to rotate in on the edge.

Another key free agent, Calais Campbell, returns to Baltimore after playing for the Ravens from 2021-22 (he arrived a few days late to training camp as he handled unthinkable personal tragedy). He just turned 40 but had 6.5 sacks last year for the Arizona Cardinals — players and front office folks alike consider him a consummate (and timeless) leader and teammate.

Speaking of the guys up front, what’s the deal with Nnamdi Madubuike? He got injured last year, right?

The road back to health for Madubuike, a two-time Pro Bowler who is one of the Ravens’ highest-paid players, has been one of the biggest mysteries of the offseason. It was not clear even early into the summer that Madubuike would return to the NFL after suffering a reported neck injury in Week 2 last season that required offseason surgery. But, after enduring speculation that Madubuike’s career was ending, the Ravens approved him to come back at the start of training camp.

For about a month, he was held out of contact portions of practice. Recently, he has been incorporated into more team work after the Ravens closed their sessions to reporters. But no one outside of the Castle has a strong conception of when Madubuike will play — or how effective he will be. Although Minter would not rule him out for Week 1, it seems unlikely he’ll return that soon.

Did we really get this far without bringing up Lamar Jackson? How is his future in Baltimore looking?

It has been one of the talking points of the offseason, ever since owner Steve Bisciotti acknowledged he hoped Jackson’s contract talks wouldn’t “get dragged out to April like it was the last time.” Jackson apparently has a stronger stomach for drawn-out negotiations than the Ravens do.

After no extension was reached before free agency, the Ravens restructured his contract in March, which gave them some flexibility to spend but put an untenable salary-cap hit on the budget for next season. General manager Eric DeCosta said he’s optimistic about an extension getting done, but when asked about Jackson’s contract becoming a distraction, he acknowledged: “There is only so much we can do.”

For all the speculation about Jackson’s future in Baltimore, you’d have a hard time detecting any sense of restlessness from the quarterback based on his upbeat attitude in camp. The 29-year-old has lauded new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle, has changed his footing to accommodate a more timing-based offense, and has gushed over the Ravens’ rookies who are now his passing targets.

He is also coming off an injury-riddled season, and historically, when Jackson is paired with a new coordinator and has something to prove, he performs at an MVP level.

New OC, huh? Tell me about what’s changing in the offense.

This is a new-school offense, led by a conspicuously young coordinator. Doyle is not even a full year older than Jackson himself. But, throughout seven years in the NFL, he has sat at the feet of some of the league’s most respected offensive minds, including Denver’s Sean Payton and Chicago’s Ben Johnson. He was the Bears’ OC last year, but he will call plays for the first time with the Ravens. Chicago started slowly on offense but had a top-five unit from Week 9 for the rest of the season.

While you’d expect some things this offense has done well under Jackson to stay the same, Doyle and offensive line coach/run game coordinator Dwayne Ledford have a goal to raise the number of explosive plays. With Derrick Henry and Jackson in the backfield, there should be an emphasis on the perimeter run game. Many of the veterans have bubbled over with enthusiasm about the new look.

Should I feel good about Jackson’s supporting cast on offense?

There are two relatively sure things, starting with Henry, who has run for more than 3,500 yards in two seasons with Baltimore. Though he’s turning 33, he looks as physically intimidating as ever coming into his 11th season.

Then there’s Pro Bowl receiver Zay Flowers, who signed a big-money extension early in training camp. He’s gone over 1,000 receiving yards each of the last two seasons and been remarkably durable. The only area in which he hasn’t excelled is reaching the end zone (14 TDs over his first three seasons). Doyle has said Flowers will fit anywhere and everywhere in his offense, and the affinity seems to be mutual.

Outside of those two, however, there are serious question marks. Rashod Bateman took a huge step back last year, and though he has looked sharp in camp, the wide receiver is under NFL investigation after an arrest in June. Mark Andrews saw a decline last season, too, and in training camp the 31-year-old tight end seemed to show his age.

On the positive side, rookie receiver Ja’Kobi Lane out of USC had a huge camp and hopes are high that he can make an early impact with his ability to win contested balls.

Wait, who are the Ravens replacing? Didn’t John Harbaugh take some Ravens with him to New York?

Indeed, the longtime Baltimore coach raided the roster, scooping up free agents including fullback Patrick Ricard, tight end Isaiah Likely, safety Ar’Darius Washington and punter Jordan Stout. The Chargers took a few others, including tight end Charlie Kolar and running back Keaton Mitchell. The biggest name the Ravens lost was center Tyler Linderbaum, who signed a record-setting deal with the Las Vegas Raiders after making three Pro Bowls.

There’s a lot of inexperience stepping into these roles, especially in the tight end room, with rookies Matt Hibner and Josh Cuevas. Jovaughn Gwyn, a three-year veteran with only 11 NFL offensive snaps prior to this season, was announced as Week 1’s starting center. Alongside him at right guard, first-round pick Vega Ioane will be making his debut Sunday, replacing the much-maligned Daniel Faalele, who also left in free agency.

OK, one thing I definitely remember is that Baltimore’s season last year ended on a missed field goal in Pittsburgh. What is going on with the Ravens’ kicker?

Tyler Loop is still very much the starter — for now. The second-year kicker out of Arizona had a strong training camp, except for the part when he was actually kicking in games. He was just 5-for-8 on preseason field goal attempts and was 1-for-3 at another stadium practice at the University of Maryland. Although the Ravens initially said they were confident in Loop as their only placekicker entering camp, these wobbles were concerning enough for them to bring in former third-round pick Jake Moody, who has kicked in San Francisco, Chicago and Washington. Although Loop is the presumptive Week 1 starter, he enters the season with Moody waiting in the wings on the practice squad.

The Ravens got off to a slow start last year, right? What is this year’s outlook?

The schedule couldn’t be much softer at the start. The first seven games are against teams that did not make the 2025 postseason, and among them only the Cowboys (Week 3) and the Bengals (Week 7) have truly threatening offenses on paper. While the Ravens struggled to a 1-5 record to start the 2025 campaign, they’ll have plenty of time this year to round into form for an anticipated matchup against the Bills in Week 8, featuring two of the last three MVP-winning quarterbacks on the marquee.

That sounds good! But the team last year looked pretty good on paper, too. Why should I think this season is any different?

Everything the Ravens want to achieve begins and ends with a healthy Jackson. When he’s on, Baltimore tends to cruise through the regular season, especially against a schedule this soft. When he’s hurt, things tend to fall apart.

Now that the team has one of the NFL’s most respected defensive play-callers in Minter, returns one of the NFL’s best defensive backs in Hamilton, adds a productive edge rusher in Hendrickson and could see Madubuike back on the field, there’s a lot of promise on the defensive side of the ball, too.

It is exceedingly rare for a first-time head coach to reach the Super Bowl. Only five coaches have made the climb to a championship game. Could Minter add himself to that elite list?

If he does, that’s one neat fun fact you can share with your football-loving friends — making them believe you’ve been paying attention all along.