Greg Roman should replace Marty Mornhinweg as Ravens OC
The Ravens Flock pretty much all agrees that Marty Mornhinweg has to go, but Greg Roman shouldn’t:
Baltimore Ravens fans should be very familiar with the work of Greg Roman. Marty Mornhinweg should get a lot of credit for calling a completely transformed offensive attack tailored around the running game and Lamar Jackson. Mornhinweg called the plays, but the offense was essentially designed by Roman. If Roman was there to design the rushing attack, and the Ravens were dependent on the most unique running game in the NFL, it stands to reason that Roman was the driving force behind the Ravens 6-1 run with this offense.
Mornhinweg has never been on stable footing as the offensive coordinator. He took over for Marc Trestman in 2016. He’s never been a fan favorite and Mornhinweg has been one of the biggest scapegoats for the Ravens fanbase every time the Ravens lost. Mornhinweg has a checkered past as the Ravens’ offensive coordinator and he’s coming off a misguided effort in a playoff loss.
The only somewhat solid argument to bring back Mornhinweg is to avoid changing everything before Jackson’s first full season as a starter. Spare me. John Harbaugh is coming back as the head coach. Secondly, if Mornhinweg isn’t the right man for the job then keeping him around only hurts Jackson’s progress. This argument is however a good reason Roman should be promoted.
Roman provides the best of both worlds. Making him the offensive coordinator is an easy change that keeps things in tact for Jackson. Roman is an experienced coach who’s been the offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills and before that the San Francisco 49ers. Roman is easily one of the most qualified candidates to replace Mornhinweg.
Roman will eventually move on to bigger and better things than working under Mornhinweg. If the Ravens kept Mornhinweg, because the Jackson era got off to a mostly successful start, the run a great risk. They could find out that Roman’s creativity was not just the catalyst for the new look offense, but the thing that made it work.
Good offensive coordinators are hard to find. If they are experienced they could be available for the wrong reason. Harbaugh also has a track record of hiring the wrong coordinators. In his tenure he’s already fired Cam Cameron and Marc Trestman. Roman is already in Baltimore. This decision makes itself if the Ravens admit that Mornhinweg has to go.
We keep hearing that Mornhinweg worked with Michael Vick in Philadelphia as a reason he meshes with Jackson. It’s hard to dispute that this is valuable experience but Roman worked with a young Colin Kaepernick in San Francisco. This experience may translate better with working with a young mobile quarterback than Mornhinweg’s time in Vick’s second stint in the NFL.
Mornhinweg’s game plan for the Chargers game didn’t work. He didn’t adjust or come up with any sort of solution to the problem. This was the last straw for him. Mornhinweg has to go, but Roman might just be his best replacement.