The Ravens just fired John Harbaugh after 18 seasons. That is not a little move. That is not a “we’re unhappy with the play calling” move. That is Baltimore saying the current version of the Ravens was not good enough, and they are done pretending it will fix itself.

Here is what I can’t get past. The heat from this firing landed on Harbaugh like a piano, and it landed on the defense like a second piano, and somehow Lamar Jackson is still being talked about like he is off-limits. Like he was just a bystander in the whole thing. Like the season happened to him instead of around him.

I’m not saying Lamar is bad. I’m not saying the Ravens should dump him. I’m saying if the franchise is willing to fire a Super Bowl winning coach with an 18-year track record, then the franchise quarterback cannot keep getting treated like he has no fingerprints on the season.

How John Harbaugh's last four seasons ended pic.twitter.com/6SXNFrYlbu

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) January 6, 2026

Why would the Ravens fire Harbaugh if the problem wasn’t bigger than coaching

Harbaugh did not get fired because he forgot how to coach football. He got fired because the season felt like a loop. The Ravens finished 8-9 and missed the playoffs. They went 3-6 at home, and that is the kind of stat that makes a proud franchise look in the mirror. They had that ugly 44-10 home loss to Houston that turned boos into headlines. Then the year ended in Pittsburgh, 26-24, on a missed 44-yard field goal as time expired.

That’s the surface. The deeper part is what a firing like this really means. When you fire the coach, you are also making a bet on the quarterback. You are saying we believe the answer is still in this building, and we are going to change everything around him until it shows up.

That is a massive bet. If it goes wrong, you don’t get to pretend it was only about Harbaugh.

What did Lamar actually do in 2025, and why do the numbers confuse the story

This is where people start arguing, because Lamar’s stat line is not a train wreck. He started 13 games. He threw for 2,549 yards with 21 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. He completed 63.6 percent of his passes and had a passer rating of 103.8. His QBR was 62.8, which is strong.

So fans look at that and say, see, he played well enough. It must be the defense. It must be the coach. It must be something else.

But the Lamar conversation cannot stop at “well enough.” Lamar is not being paid and praised like a “well enough” quarterback. He is a two-time MVP and the face of the franchise. When your team ends 8-9, and the coach gets fired, the standard for the quarterback has to be more than clean numbers.

And even his rushing tells part of the story. Lamar ran 67 times for 349 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. That is still a weapon, but it is not the full hurricane people picture when they think of Lamar at his peak. Some of that is injury. Some of that is scheme. Some of that is how defenses played him. All true. It still matters that the Ravens did not get the full unstoppable version consistently.

If the Ravens ran the ball like a bully, why did the offense still feel shaky

Here is the part that should make everyone pause. The Ravens had the No. 2 rushing offense in the NFL at 156.6 yards per game. They scored 24.9 points per game, which ranked 11th. That is not a broken offense. That is not a roster with no help. That is a team that should be able to control games, shorten games, and close games.

When you can run like that, you’re supposed to be a nightmare late. You’re supposed to take the air out of the stadium. You’re supposed to get the one first down that ends the night. You’re supposed to turn a fourth-quarter lead into a win without drama.

And yet, the Ravens kept living in drama. That is why people were done with Harbaugh. But it also raises a hard question about Lamar’s role. If your run game is elite and your scoring is solid, then why does it still feel like the offense depends on Lamar being perfect at the exact moment things get tight?

If the answer is “because Lamar’s style is high risk,” then you can’t turn around and give him zero responsibility when the risk shows up.

Do the blown leads fall on the quarterback too, or is that unfair

Baltimore’s late-game problem is real. Over the past six seasons, they have blown 10 double-digit leads in the second half, which is the most in the NFL over that span. That stat does not happen by accident. It is too consistent. It points to a team that has struggled to finish.

Finishing is not just defense. Yes, the defense has to get stops. Yes, coaches have to make better situational calls. But offense matters too, because offense can end the game. Offense can stay on the field. Offense can flip field position and make the opponent go 85 yards instead of 45. Offense can deliver the back-breaking drive that turns a comeback attempt into a handshake line.

That’s why it feels weird when people act like Lamar is not even part of the late-game conversation. The quarterback touches the ball every snap. When the Ravens are trying to protect a lead, Lamar is still the driver of the car.

So if you want to say Harbaugh’s in-game management cost them, fine. If you want to say the defense collapsed too often, fine. But if you want to fire the coach, you also have to be willing to look at the quarterback and ask if he has been the steady closer Baltimore needs when the clock gets loud.

The John Harbaugh experience was definitely a wild one pic.twitter.com/PAkgQo6meD

— The Ravens Realm (@RealmRavens) January 6, 2026

What did Tyler Huntley’s time on the field actually prove, and what didn’t it prove

Let me be clear before the comments get silly. Tyler Huntley is not Lamar. This is not a “start Huntley” rant. This is about what fans saw with their own eyes and why it made the conversation uncomfortable.

Huntley’s sample is small, but it was clean. He threw for 426 yards with 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions in limited action. His passer rating was around 103, and his QBR was 80.8. Those are not “backup barely surviving” numbers. Those are “the offense looks calm” numbers.

What does that prove? It proves the Ravens can play a steadier, simpler brand of offense when the quarterback is not doing the full Lamar experience. It shows the system can function. It shows the roster is not helpless.

What does it not prove? It does not prove Huntley is better. It does not prove Lamar is the problem. It does not erase Lamar’s talent.

But it does challenge one idea that fans cling to. The idea that every ugly offensive moment has to be coaching, because Lamar is always the solution.

Sometimes the solution is also part of the chaos.

What happens when the new coaches come in and start 2-3

This is the part I’m really writing about, because it is what comes next. Baltimore is about to bring in a new staff, new voices, new scheme tweaks, new slogans about culture and accountability. Then the season will start, and reality will show up.

If they start 1-4 or 2-3, who are we blaming first?

If Lamar is playing out of his mind, fans will say the coaches need time and the roster will settle. If Lamar is playing fine but not elite, fans will say the coaches are failing him. If Lamar misses time, fans will say the season was doomed and nobody could overcome it.

Do you see how easy it is for the quarterback to stay protected in every version of the story?

That’s the pass I’m talking about. It’s not that Lamar never gets criticized. It’s that he never gets the same level of accountability that just ended a coach’s 18-year run.

At some point, if the Ravens are going to keep building around Lamar, the standard has to be simple. Healthy or not, new staff or not, the team has to win the division again, and the late-game stuff has to change. Not the vibes, the outcomes.

If Harbaugh goes somewhere else and wins, what does that say about Baltimore

Harbaugh left Baltimore with a 180-113 regular-season record, 12 playoff trips, and a Super Bowl ring. Coaches with that resume do not disappear. He is going to get real interest, and if he lands with the right roster, he could win fast.

If Harbaugh goes to another team and gets them into the playoffs quickly, Ravens fans will have to face the scariest question. Was the problem really the coach, or was the bigger issue the ceiling of the Lamar era as it has played out in the moments that decide seasons?

I’m not saying Lamar can’t win big. I’m saying the Ravens just made the kind of move that forces that question into the open. You don’t fire a coach like Harbaugh unless you believe the roster should be doing more, and the quarterback is the biggest piece of “more.”

Here’s the share line for anybody who wants it. You can fire the coach, but you can’t fire the expectations that come with a franchise quarterback.

So what should the Lamar standard be now

Not perfection. Not weekly miracles. Not highlight reels.

The standard should be finishing. The standard should be that when Baltimore has a lead late, it feels like a win, not a gamble. The standard should be that the offense can get two first downs when the game is begging to be closed. The standard should be that the Ravens are not stuck in a cycle where they keep changing staff and hoping Lamar turns into a different version of himself on command.

That’s not hate. That’s reality. That’s what being the guy means.

Now here is the comment moment. Give me your best Lamar “when it mattered” moment from this season. Not the box score. Not the highlight clip. The drive where you knew the game was over because Lamar decided it was over, even when the other team knew what was coming.

And here is the fork question to end it. Do you want the Ravens to keep changing coaches until Lamar looks like an MVP again, or do you want Lamar to finally carry the same accountability weight that just crushed John Harbaugh?

What I’m watching next is the hire, because the hire will tell you how the Ravens really feel about Lamar without them ever saying his name.

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