The Cincinnati Bengals are reportedly willing to do whatever it takes to improve their defense this offseason and better complement Joe Burrow. Well, maybe not anything it takes, but perhaps more than their usual standard of near-nothing burger transactions.
Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson worked with new Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Declan Doyle this past season. The 29-year-old is one of the brighter young coaches in the sport, and now he's calling plays for Lamar Jackson on Jesse Minter's Baltimore staff.
If what Johnson said at the NFL Scouting Combine is any indication of Doyle's brilliance, the Bengals' defense, as currently constructed, is in even more trouble than usual versus the Ravens.
Ben Johnson gushes over Ravens OC in endorsement that should scare Bengals into mass defensive upgrades
Ravens team reporter Ryan Mink transcribed the glowing praise Johnson had for Doyle, who was the Bears' non-play-calling offensive coordinator in 2025.
"Declan is a phenomenal football coach. If you didn’t know that he was 29 years old, you wouldn’t blink an eye. The guy is seasoned beyond his years. This has been his calling. He’s known for a long time that he was going to be a football coach and he’s prepared himself accordingly. [He's] very detail oriented, extremely smart, has a great way of communicating; he’s very clear. Those guys are getting someone really, really good. I’m disappointed that we lost him as quickly as we did. I was hoping that we’d be able to hold onto him for longer.”
It was quite surprising that Baltimore moved off of such a well-respected head coach in John Harbaugh. Perhaps it was for the best.
Minter brings a bit more of a modern twist to defense. He's made his hay as an elite defensive coordinator for the Chargers the last two seasons. The Ravens are traditionally dominant on that side of the ball.
But the offense was a bigger question mark. Todd Monken took the Cleveland Browns' head coaching gig, and helped Jackson play the best football of his carer. However, things went off the rails a bit in. 2025. Jackson was banged up all season long. Monken wasn't quite as on point with his game plans. Baltimore dug itself too big of a hole to make the playoffs, but even still ,a missed field goal in Week 18 was all that stood between them and an AFC North title.
Sure sounds like Minter found a real winner in Doyle. Now that might mean Doyle becomes a head coach in 2027 or perhaps the next year. He has to succeed in his role as a play-caller first.
What makes Doyle quite dangerous on paper is, first o all, he's complemented by a brilliant defensive play-caller in Minter. Secondly, before his steep rise up the coaching ranks, Doyle began his NFL journey on Sean Payton's Saints coaching staff as an offensive assistant. He then followed Payton to Denver to be the tight ends coach from 2023-24.
Payton and Johnson are two of the greatest offensive play-callers in the sport. Unlike some of their contemporaries, they're among the very best because they know how to set up defenses. In other words, each call has a purpose. Nothing is arbitrary. Surprisingly, this isn't always the case for every team.
If Doyle is even close to as good as Payton or Johnson, the Ravens will have hit a home run with their OC hire, and Jackson is about to roar back in 2026 from a disappointing season.