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Ravens debates: Is John Harbaugh overrated or underrated?

By Chris Schisler

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JANUARY 06: Head coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens looks on against the Los Angeles Chargers during the AFC Wild Card Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 06, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JANUARY 06: Head coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens looks on against the Los Angeles Chargers during the AFC Wild Card Playoff game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 06, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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John Harbaugh has been the Baltimore Ravens head coach since 2008. Is he overrated or underrated?

The Argument that John Harbaugh is overrated:

The argument that John Harbaugh is overrated can certainly be made. It’s not my opinion, so let’s get my devil’s advocate argument out of the way. The idea that Harbaugh is overrated comes from the fact that he’s got a Super Bowl ring but things have gone in a downward trajectory since he earned it. Harbaugh’s Ravens have missed the playoffs four times since the Super Bowl. In that time the Ravens were too good to cash in with high draft picks and not good enough for the postseason.

Harbaugh is the second most tenured head coach in the NFL. He’s obviously highly thought of because teams were drooling at the mouth when it was thought that he could be fired. That being said, the problems with Harbaugh are painfully obvious.

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He doesn’t call plays on either side of the ball and he has shuffled through offensive coordinators the way the team used to shuffle through quarterbacks. It’s a very fair criticism of Harbaugh that he can’t pick the right coordinator. Harbaugh has subjected the Ravens Flock to Marc Trestman and Marty Mornhinweg. That’s a bad look. Harbaugh is to offensive coordinators as Ozzie Newsome is to wide receivers.

The Ravens playoff run was impressive but the playoff performance against the Chargers was about as bad as it could be. Marty Mornhinweg came into the game with a stale game-plan, something Harbaugh let happen. Harbaugh didn’t get Mornhinweg to adjust until it was too late. The argument against Harbaugh and the argument that he is overrated boils down to his over dependence on coordinators. Harbaugh is responsible for a lot of good things that have happened over the years. 2008-2012 were the golden years, much of the rest has been like a flat soda.

The Argument that John Harbaugh is underrated:

The Baltimore Ravens have one of the most successful head coaches in the NFL. John Harbaugh has won a Super Bowl, been to three AFC Championship games and has won 104 regular season games. When the Ravens entered the 2018 season this was not enough to prevent Harbaugh from being on the hot seat.

The Ravens had missed the playoffs in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017 and Harbaugh was under as much pressure as any coach in the league. The Ravens rough patch has left the head coach of the Ravens as one of the most underrated coaches in football.

The mark of a John Harbaugh team is that they are competitive. Harbaugh has had one losing season and it was during a rough bunch of injuries in 2015. Every other season the Ravens have finished at least .500 on the season. You don’t win the Super Bowl every year and Harbaugh has proven that when his team has the right pieces he can get them there.

Harbaugh also has fared well in the playoffs. He has a 10-6 record in the playoffs and his only first round exit was this past season. Getting the 2018 team to the playoffs in the first place was an incredible accomplishment.

The 2018 Ravens were 4-5 and looked to be done. Lamar Jackson was inserted as the starting quarterback and the Ravens went on a 6-1 stretch. Here’s the thing though, it was’t that simple. The Ravens didn’t just insert a new quarterback they had to change the offense completely and the players had to buy into it. With another coach the 2018 Ravens may not have been the AFC North Champions. Harbaugh kept the train on the tracks and that’s one of the things he does best.

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Adversity comes for every football team during the NFL season and Harbaugh handles it better than most. One thing that has to be said about Harbaugh is that he has never lost the locker room and he’s always had the players’ ears. Harbaugh doesn’t get enough credit. Under his tenure the Ravens have not always been as good as Baltimore would like them to be, but they’ve seldom been bad. The Ravens are almost always an edgy team who makes it interesting win or lose. That comes from the head coach.

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