Ravens woo Lamar Jackson with input on OC hire, hope for contract extension I The Rush
Multiple NFL coordinators were fired on Thursday, including Byron Leftwich being released by the Buccaneers and Greg Roman, who was relieved of his duties as the Ravens offensive coordinator. Baltimore brass says that Lamar Jackson will have input on the next offensive coordinator hire as the Ravens hope to sign the star quarterback to a longterm contract. In positive sports news, Allyson Felix gets her flowers, Kyle Kuzma pays it forward and Andy Murray brings absolute mayhem to the Australian Open.
Video Transcript
- I did ask Lamar about it, you know? And he will be involved in it, you know? I'll keep him abreast of what's going on, and I'm sure he'll have some input along the way. But I know his focus, like he told me, is going to be on getting himself ready.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
JARED QUAY: Thursday was rough for several NFL coaches. Despite winning 13 games last season, the Vikings fired defensive coordinator Ed Donatell, probably because Minnesota's defense was the third worst in the NFL.
- Oh, that's bad.
JARED QUAY: Offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich is out in Tampa after the Bucs went from winning a Super Bowl in 2021 to having the league's 25th best offense in 2022.
- What have you done for me lately?
JARED QUAY: And without Lamar Jackson on the field lately, Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman was relieved of his duties after Baltimore's offense struggled big time without the star quarterback. Speaking of Lamar, the Ravens say they will consult him on the offensive coordinator hire as the team seems hopeful and kind of desperate to get him signed to a long term deal.
ERIC DECOSTA: I truly believe Lamar wants to finish his career in Baltimore. I just believe that in my conversations with him and just watching him and talking with him and communicating. I think John feels that way too. So all of those things kind of work together for me that tell me that we still have a chance and that I should be as optimistic as possible.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
JARED QUAY: Hang on to the optimism, buddy. There's actually a lot of positivity going around the sports world these days like the University of Southern California renaming a field on campus Allyson Felix Field in honor of the alumna and one of the best track and field athletes in history. And how about Kyle Kuzma dropping dimes on and off the court?
KYLE KUZMA: I am donating $1,000,000 to the Flint YMCA.
- Wow.
- Wow.
[CROWD CHEERS]
JARED QUAY: The Wizards' forward paid it forward donating 1 million bucks to the YMCA in Flint, Michigan, where he used to hoop as a kid. And our final feel good story of the week comes from the faraway land of Australia.
- What is this, [BLEEP] Middle Earth?
JARED QUAY: Nah, that's New Zealand, bro. Andy Murray thought he was going to retire in 2019 after surgery that landed him with a metal hip. Instead, the 35-year-old is balling out at the Australian Open. In his second round match against the Aussie, Thanasi Kokkinakis, the Scott overcame a two-set deficit to win a five-set thriller. It lasted nearly six hours and ended after 4:00 AM, local time. Andy is going to need all the rest he can get after this masterclass. Y'all have a great weekend.
[CROWD CHEERS]
- Game, Murray.
