To understand the present, it\u2019s often best to look at the past. So when thinking about a coach on the cusp of his first draft with a new NFL team in nearly two decades, there are lessons to be learned from John Harbaugh\u2019s history in Baltimore.<\/p>\n
Harbaugh was a part of 18 drafts with the Ravens, and the whole of his track record is important and telling. But, for this exercise, let\u2019s narrow a scope to a single draft, when the Ravens were in a similar spot to where the New York Giants find themselves now.<\/p>\n
The Ravens drafted quarterback Lamar Jackson with the final pick of the 2018 first round. It was a transformational moment for the franchise, and one the Giants are hoping to find after their late-first-round selection of quarterback Jaxson Dart last year. Obviously, the 2026 Giants are not the 2019 Ravens in 2019. The quarterbacks are different, and so are the general managers (the Giants have Joe Schoen, while the Ravens Eric DeCosta was in his first year as Baltimore\u2019s GM in 2019).<\/p>\n
But for those, like me, who weren\u2019t following the Ravens closely seven years ago, or anyone for whom time has simply made things a bit blurry, it\u2019s an interesting exercise to go back in the past just to look at how the Ravens handled their first draft with a new face of the franchise at QB \u2014 and then consider how Harbaugh might move forward.<\/p>\n
A quick refresh: Heading into the 2018 draft, the Ravens had missed the playoffs for a third straight season behind quarterback Joe Flacco, who had been dealing with injuries and slipping production. It was time to start looking for Flacco\u2019s successor, and the Ravens found that in Jackson. They made a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles as the first round wound down. Jackson took over the starting job midseason after Flacco suffered a hip injury, and Flacco never got it back.<\/p>\n
The Ravens lost a home wild-card game to the Los Angeles Chargers, then completely altered their offense around Jackson that offseason. They traded Flacco to the Denver Broncos. Harbaugh fired offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg and replaced him with Greg Roman, then the team\u2019s tight ends coach. As The Athletic\u2019s Ravens reporter Jeff Zreibec noted<\/a>, Roman oversaw the overhaul of the offensive playbook with things being \u201csimplified or streamlined for Jackson\u201d in some cases.<\/p>\n With eight total picks in the 2019 draft, the Ravens selected Marquise \u201cHollywood\u201d Brown with the No. 25 pick. Two of their next three picks were used on offensive skill players: wide receiver Miles Boykin and running back Justice Hill. With their final draft pick, they added Trace McSorley to the quarterback room alongside Robert Griffin III, who had re-signed on a two-year deal. But the draft wasn\u2019t just about getting players for Jackson, it was about getting good players as a whole.<\/p>\n