Ranking the Baltimore Ravens’ Most Important Offseason Choices for 2025
The Baltimore Ravens had another strong season in 2024, thanks in no small part to another MVP-caliber season from quarterback Lamar Jackson. Baltimore’s offense showed more growth in its second year under Todd Monken, and free-agent acquisition Derrick Henry fit in quickly and perfectly.
Unfortunately, Baltimore’s defense experienced some growing pains in its first season under Zach Orr. While the unit was operating efficiently by season’s end, early struggles prevented the Ravens from earning one of the AFC’s top two seeds.
A road trip in the divisional round yielded a loss to the Buffalo Bills and an earlier offseason than the Ravens would have liked.
The good news is that most of Baltimore’s key pieces are in place, including Monken, who agreed to an extension in late January. The Ravens will be looking to go further in 2025, of course, which means head coach John Harbaugh and general manager Eric DeCosta have some tough decisions ahead.
Here we’ll rank the biggest based on how they may impact free agency, the draft, the 2025 season and beyond.
This one ranks low on our list, strictly because a split between Baltimore and Harbaugh is highly unlikely. Their partnership has existed since 2008 and has largely been successful. While the Ravens haven’t won a Super Bowl since the 2012 season, they’ve been competitive far more often than not.
Baltimore reached the AFC Championship Game in 2023 and has won back-to-back AFC North titles. The franchise shouldn’t be considering change, as the rival Pittsburgh Steelers—who haven’t won a playoff game since the 2016 season—might be.
An extension between the Ravens and Harbaugh is practically inevitable. It’ll probably happen at some point this offseason because Harbaugh is entering the final year of his current deal. Most franchises—except for the Dallas Cowboys, perhaps—prefer not to have coaches working on the final year of their contract.
Sorting out an extension and determining Harbaugh’s value will take some work. A year ago, he was the league’s seventh-highest-paid head coach, with an annual salary of $12 million, according to Front Office Sports. That was before the Steelers signed Mike Tomlin to a three-year, $50 million extension and well before the 2025 hiring cycle.
New Chicago Bears coach Ben Johnson will reportedly make $13 million annually, according to ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio.
Again, Harbaugh probably isn’t going anywhere. However, he’s due an extension and likely a fairly substantial raise. Getting it done will be part of the offseason plan.a
