Ravens Reveal Traits They Want in John Harbaugh Replacement

"They grind for three or four years, and they're caught up in the cycle of many of my partners that are turning these – I think it's an average [of] four years [for a head-coaching] career – I think the head coach is about four years, as we proved – I think we've got a quarter [open jobs] now, about eight or nine," Biscotti said. "The one thing that I know that I will probably take it on the chin is if our final candidate is an ex-[head] coach who has a losing record, and you all are going to have to understand that we are going to be able to judge that failure with his circumstances and marry that up and not disqualify them."

Biscotti underlined that a prospective candidate having a losing record from a previous stint at the helm of a team won't disqualify them from being contention to land in Baltimore. The Ravens have already interviewed 10 potential candidates, six of which are former head coaches, with Kansa City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy being the only one with the winning record.

"I think you have to remember that they were the hottest coaches in their cycle, and they got jobs and they got tough jobs, and I don't think we have a tough job," Biscotti said. "I think that we created the best opening in this cycle, and so, that was the one category that I didn't want to ignore"

"It'd be very easy for me to try and avoid those ex-head coaches because they have losing records, but I'm telling you, we are keen to their circumstances, and we won't let their first shot at a job influence us negatively for this one."

Biscotti revealed that DeCosta and the rest of the front office heads are spearheading the coaching search and that he'll be involved once again once a list of finalists has been put together by the committee. As for what the Ravens' seventh-year general manager is looking for when it comes to the ideal replacement for his close friend and former neighbor, DeCosta listed some similar traits and more.

"We want the best leader we can find," DeCosta said. "We want somebody who's going to hold the players accountable. We want somebody who's an expert in X's and O's, and we want somebody who the players can relate to, but also somebody that's going to be firm and continue the culture that we've built, which we think is important."

As the most desirable destination of the vacancies that were created, the Ravens have the privilege of being the belle of the ball and will have an abundance of qualified and intriguing candidates itching to get this job.

"I think we're going to be in a good position," DeCosta said. "There's a lot of interest. I've never been through this process like this. I had no idea how many phone calls that I would get – from agents, from coaches, people in the media, the national media, the local media – there's just tremendous interest in this particular opportunity.

Turning recent misfortunes around will take a collective effort

Bisciotti made it clear that the responsibility of getting the Ravens back to being a top-tier contender won't fall squarely on the next head coach's shoulders because he expects him to work in tandem with the rest of the organization's leadership and the fellow coaches he brings in or retains from the last regime.

"If we fail, then I'll assess his contribution to that failure, because like I said, this is an 'all hands on deck.' When we fail, we fail together," Bisciotti said. "It's Eric's job to mentor him and guide him in our culture, hope he understands it and can add to that culture. What we do on the field, it will play a role, but I certainly hope to get back to the playoffs, and I certainly hope to overachieve."

The Ravens have been in Super Bowl or bust mode since Jackson's first MVP season in 2019, and they expect their new head coach to help put them in a position to shed the reputation of being chokers and underachievers that they justifiably earned in the later years of Harbaugh's tenure. It took him just five years win the franchise's second title, and his predecessor Brian Billick just two seasons to claim the first.

"Maybe I'll give this guy six (years)," Bisciotti said with a laugh. "I hope we pick the kind of guy that's going to get us there. I think we have a roster that's capable of it. I think we have a GM that's capable of making that roster better on the fly, and yes, I'll be patient to that point. I'd probably give him five or six years – as long as I like everything else I see in him."