Conference Championship Weekend Picks and Predictions
USA TODAY Sports’ Joe Rivera, Chris Bumbaka and Jarrett Bell break down who they think will earn a ticket to Super Bowl 60.
For the first time since 2008, the Baltimore Ravens have a new head coach.
The team announced Thursday that it has agreed to a contract with Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.
Minter, 42, was an assistant coach on Ravens manager John Harbaugh’s staff from 2017 to 2020. Baltimore fired Harbaugh on January 6, ending an 18-year tenure with the franchise that ranked as the second-longest tenure among head coaches.
“I am truly honored to serve as the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens,” Minter said in a release. “This is an organization whose values, culture and tradition of excellence reflect everything I believe about the game of football and the way it is played.”
Under Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, Minter has assembled a defense that will give up the fewest points in the NFL in 2024 after ranking 24th just a year ago. Last season, Los Angeles ranked in the top 10 in both scoring defense (9th) and yards allowed (5th).
Minter quickly became one of the most in-demand coaches on the interview circuit, with all nine teams with vacancies this offseason requesting to meet with him before the Buffalo Bills fired Sean McDermott on Tuesday.
Minter met with the Ravens on Wednesday. According to multiple reports, early Thursday he withdrew as a candidate to start the season for the Cleveland Browns.
The Ravens conducted an extensive search and interviewed 16 candidates before making the hire.
In Baltimore, Minter will be tasked with leading two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson (owner Steve Bisciotti has said he hopes to reach a contract extension before he hits free agency) and the rest of the talented roster, who are tied for the most Pro Bowl selections with six. The Ravens are coming off their third losing season in the last 18 years.
“Jesse is a strong leader with a great football mind and a spirit that resonates with our players and fan base,” Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said in a release. “Jesse comes from a football family with success at every level of the sport, and we are confident he is the right coach to lead the Ravens moving forward.”
Minter’s departure from Los Angeles means the Chargers will make two changes as coordinator in the offseason. The team fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman and replaced him with former Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel.
Minter’s departure was foreseen by Jim Harbaugh.
“It’s really not a matter of ‘if.’ We knew that. The product that Jesse has established as a head defensive coach is so good that it’s a matter of ‘when,’ so we know it’s a matter of ‘when.’ So (we are) ready for that,” Harbaugh said last week.
Minter received an outpouring of support on social media from several Chargers players, including safeties Derwin James and Tony Jefferson.
