The Baltimore Ravens
are about to witness a seismic shift in identity, and it starts with the youngest offensive coordinator in the NFL setting a championship-or-bust tone for the franchise. At just 29 years old, Declan Doyleis making sure everyone in Baltimore knows exactly what the "standard" looks like moving forward.
"This is the 2026 Baltimore Ravens
. This is what we want it to look like," Doyle said on the Lounge podcast on Monday, February 16. "The detail and the championship standard that was implemented [in Chicago
] is exactly what I would emulate. There was a commitment to it every single day."
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"We're not going to be vague about what we're going to ask our players to do," he explained. "We're going to make sure that they understand what the expectations are, and then the championship standard is holding them and ourselves to that every single day."
The urgency behind Doyle's message becomes clear when you look at Baltimore's recent offensive production. The Ravens finished this season with their offense ranked 11th in points and 16th in yards. Not terrible numbers by any stretch, but a massive downgrade from their 2024 campaign when they ranked third in points and first in total yards.
That season saw Baltimore march into the playoffs with one of the league's most feared offenses. That's the standard Doyle wants to not just match but exceed in his first year calling plays.
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Moreover, the postseason pain runs deeper. The Ravens, with Lamar Jackson
under center, have tasted the playoffs five times during his tenure. But out of those five appearances, they've reached the championship game just once. They most often fall short in the divisional round. That pattern of regular-season excellence followed by playoff heartbreak is precisely what Doyle is looking to change.
"What we do in April, May, June is going to carry us into November. And it's going to allow us to play at a playoff caliber when it's playoff time and not have to change the way we behave," Doyle added on the podcast.
But there's another layer to Doyle's emphasis on team culture that carries added significance. This comes as speculation has swirled about Jackson having significant influence within the Ravens organization. And that reportedly created some tension behind the scenes.
Against that backdrop, Doyle's messaging about a collective standard takes on deeper meaning.
"It's starting to become a player team where those guys know the standard, and they can uphold that for each other," Doyle said.
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For the Ravens and especially for Jackson, it's essential that this team finally breaks free of the pattern of just reaching the playoffs and actually makes it to the Super Bowl. But there's a significant financial obstacle standing in the way of that championship dream. And it comes with a strong sense of déjà vu for the Baltimore front office.
The Ravens have been here before. Jackson is set to complete his five-year contract in 2027, but the franchise wants to keep their two-time MVP locked up for much longer. Something they made abundantly clear when they fired longtime head coach John Harbaugh and rebuilt the coaching staff around Jackson's future.
To keep Jackson in Baltimore long-term, the Ravens are looking to extend his contract before this upcoming season. But that extension won't come easily for the organization. However, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk
has outlined a creative plan that could help facilitate negotiations while simultaneously upgrading the roster.
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"Remember 2023 when the Ravens were in that awkward contract status with Lamar Jackson?" Florio asked. "They signed Odell Beckham Jr.
, and they gave him like 15 million guaranteed. Like it was a number that no one else was going to pay, but it had an added benefit.
"It got the deal done with Lamar Jackson. Maybe adding Tyreek Hill is the thing that gets Lamar Jackson to sign the contract the Ravens would have on the table in lieu of pushing for something more. So they're going to be in play, potentially."
Now that Tyreek Hill
is freshly released by the Miami Dolphins,
the Ravens have an opportunity to run the same play from their 2023 playbook. Hill, despite being 31 years old, remains one of the most dangerous deep threats.
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His availability has the entire league buzzing with speculation about potential landing spots. The Chiefs
emerged as an early possibility for a reunion.
But the Ravens also desperately need reliable targets for Jackson if they want to fulfill Doyle's championship vision.
If Hill does land in Baltimore, he's projected to sign a deal worth between $10 to $20 million annually. That represents a significant drop from his previous contract with Miami, which paid him $30 million per year.
But the reduced salary makes sense given Hill's age and the fact that an ACL injury suffered early in the 2025 season won't allow him to suit up early in the upcoming campaign. Still, even a recovering Hill gives the Ravens a proven commodity who can stretch defenses vertically and create favorable matchups for the rest of Baltimore's offensive weapons.
