John Harbaugh Buffered Major Tension Between Lamar Jackson, Ravens OC

There aren't many headlines just days after the NFL season has had the kind of impact that the Baltimore Ravens' firing of head coach John Harbaugh has had.

Harbaugh just finished his final year of an 18-year run with the team, which ended with an 8-9 record, with kicker Tyler Loop missing a 44-yard field goal that sent the Pittsburgh Steelers to the playoffs and the Ravens home. There have been many reports and stories since Harbaugh was let go, but The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec offered some insightful details about Harbaugh's role in the relationship between quarterback Lamar Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Monken.

"It's very clear that John Harbaugh wanted to keep Todd Monken. Lamar Jackson, I think, and Todd Monken's personalities I don't think meshed very well at times. I think John was the buffer between the two for much of the year, and much of the last couple years. It's not that they hated each other."

John Harbaugh caught in the middle of Lamar Jackson-Todd Monken issues

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

This season was a good example of Baltimore's offense being more out of sync than it had been in the past. Jackson had his weakest statistical season in years, completing just 63.6% of his passes for 2,549 yards and 21 touchdowns to seven interceptions. The most noticeable thing about Jackson's game is his lack of running, due to his early-season hamstring injury, which made him more of a pocket passer. He had 349 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 5.2 yards per carry, the lowest since his rookie season in 2018.

Monken has come under fire for how the offense performed this season, as it had the worst total offense ranking in his three seasons as offensive coordinator, finishing 16th, while also being 11th in points, the lowest. Monken's decision-making frustrated Ravens fans, including his and Harbaugh's decision to leave Derrick Henry off the field on the final two drives of the Week 16 loss to the New England Patriots, which saw Baltimore blow an 11-point lead.

It was a situation bound to blow up, and it appears the Ravens brass knew it going into their decision to fire Harbaugh. Multiple reporters have reported that the franchise wanted Harbaugh to fire Monken, but he refused, leading to his firing.

Ravens fans can safely assume that Jackson will have a say in who the new head coach is, since he is the franchise quarterback, and his relationship with Monken appeared to affect the team's performance. A new era of Ravens football will probably be much different from what fans have become accustomed to with Harbaugh.

Make sure you bookmark Baltimore Ravens On SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!