It’s safe to say the Baltimore Ravens offense is enjoying the breath of fresh air that’s come with the arrival of Declan Doyle. After a painful 2025 season, changes came fast and furious on the coaching staff, and the hiring of the 30-year-old Doyle was one of the most intriguing coaching additions of the offseason.
It’s not often that your offensive coordinator is almost a full year older than your quarterback, but that’s the state that Baltimore is in. However, for anyone questioning that, Doyle is quickly checking all the boxes in training camp. At every turn, there’s been heaps of praise, and perhaps no position may benefit more than the wide receiver group.
In an interview on Chris Simms Unbuttoned, newly-paid wideout Zay Flowers spoke about differences between what Doyle is bringing to the table and what former OC Todd Monken had them doing.
“You're able to move around, do a lot more, and run a lot of different routes with Coach Declan. He allows you to be yourself,” Flowers said. “He's close to our age, so he can talk to us like he's one of us. Coach Monk, he was a little bit older, so he wanted things done a certain way.”
Baltimore Ravens WR room could have best year yet under Declan Doyle
The Ravens have been getting better at developing wide receivers. Most notably, Zay Flowers is probably already the greatest receiver in franchise history, but it might be going beyond that. Rashod Bateman has flashed and may be trending back in the right direction in 2026, and Ja’Kobi Lane is seemingly making highlight-reel catches every day at training camp. The progress this offseason has much to do with Declan Doyle’s offensive expertise.
Perhaps the biggest factor that Doyle is emphasizing with his receivers is versatility. As Flowers mentioned, he’s allowing the guys to be themselves and run different routes. The same can be said for where they’re being aligned, too—Doyle’s going to use them wherever he sees fit.
Bateman spoke about the importance of versatility in a recent interview at camp.
“As a receiver, you want somebody to believe in you, to see your ability, and I think Declan is doing a good job of moving all of us around,” Bateman said. “Not just myself. Zay’s been moving around a lot, y’all see Ja’Kobi Lane making plays, Tez Walker. I think there’s a lot in store for a lot of guys this season.”
When you’re not stuck in one particular spot, the possibilities are endless. Opposing defenses have to gameplan differently and think on the fly as the game progresses. Moving guys around from the outside to the slot gives them different opportunities and ways to attack and do damage—it’s a creative mindset from Doyle that was desperately needed.
There’s evidence that this could pay off in a big way, as well. While Doyle wasn’t calling the plays for the Chicago Bears offense in 2025, he obviously played a pivotal role in drawing up game scripts. That passing offense felt electric at times (ranking 10th in the league in total passing yards), and you saw guys like DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, and Luther Burden have their moments in the spotlight throughout the year.
I know no Chicago wideout went over 700 yards last year, but they each surpassed 650 yards in a run-heavy and tight end-friendly offense. The passing attack also came alive in the playoffs with explosive play after explosive play. That’s the kind of dynamic passing game that Doyle is trying to bring to Charm City.
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