Hour 1 – John Harbaugh Fired, Jamison Hensley

Summary

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The Dan Patrick Show

Episode: Hour 1 – John Harbaugh Fired, Jamison Hensley
Date: January 7, 2026
Host: Dan Patrick
Key Guest: Jamison Hensley (ESPN Ravens Reporter)

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Overview

Hour 1 of today’s Dan Patrick Show dives headfirst into the bombshell firing of John Harbaugh after 18 years as head coach of the Baltimore Ravens. Dan unpacks the news, explores whether Harbaugh truly “lost the locker room,” analyzes implications for both Harbaugh and the Ravens, and interviews ESPN’s Ravens insider Jamison Hensley for context and behind-the-scenes insight. The discussion is sharp, reflective, and sometimes playful, with Dan and the Danettes bringing perspective from decades in the sports world.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Firing of John Harbaugh

• Initial Reaction:
  Dan expresses that while not “shocked,” he was “surprised” by Harbaugh’s firing, especially with the timing and the “lost the locker room” narrative.

  "I'm rarely shocked in this business after 40 years and I wasn't shocked yesterday. Was I surprised the Ravens moved on from John Harbaugh? I was." (03:12)

• Lingering Questions:

  • Would Harbaugh still be fired if the Ravens had made the playoffs or won a playoff game?
  • Is "losing the locker room" just a catch-all justification when teams struggle, or is there substance?
  • Dan notes Harbaugh didn’t want to go, which undermines any narrative of a “mutual parting.”

  "It wasn't a mutual parting because John Harbaugh did not want to go." (09:48)

• Immediate Market Interest:

  • Multiple teams (as many as seven) reportedly reached out to Harbaugh’s agent within an hour.
  • Some interest plausibly came from teams with coaches heading to the playoffs—raising questions about backchannel communications.

  "One of my sources immediately said he'll be the Giants number one candidate. He's going to have jobs probably to pick from." (02:22)

2. Lamar Jackson’s Non-committal Response

• Key Clip:
  When asked postgame by Jamison Hensley whether he wanted Harbaugh to remain coach, Lamar Jackson demurred:

  "You asked me about next year, Jameson. Like, I'm so caught up in what just happened tonight. I can't, I can't focus on that right now. I just told you, like he asked me. Are you stunned? I'm stunned right now. I'm still trying to process what's going on. Like, I know we lost, but, like, you know, that's all." (04:43, 15:14)

• Interpretation:
  Dan and Hensley both note that this lack of a clear “endorsement” for Harbaugh, especially compared to how players usually back preferred coaches, is telling.

  "But the easy way to answer that was yes, but hey, I don't want to talk about that now... Unless he doesn't want John Harbaugh back. Feels like there was something going on after 18 years." (05:02)

3. “Lost the Locker Room”—What Does It Really Mean?

• Dan's Take:
  The loose definition of “losing the locker room” is questioned—Is it a few veteran voices, the quarterback, or the whole group? After nearly two decades, growth of staleness is normal.

  "How many guys are going to be there for five consecutive years? So you lose the locker room. When did you lose the locker room? And if so, who did you lose in that locker room? Did you lose your quarterback? Did you lose Derrick Henry?" (05:25)

4. The Ravages of Coaching Tenure in the NFL

• Historical Comparisons:
  Dan draws parallels to Andy Reid’s departure from the Eagles and Bill Belichick’s Patriots exit, noting how departures can work out for all sides but are rarely carefree or mutual.

  "The NFL doesn't reward nostalgia. It's what are you doing for me right now?" (07:16) "Letting go of a legend is never easy, but sometimes it is necessary. I mean, I go back to the Cowboys with Tom Landry. Like, I couldn't fathom that Tom Landry got fired..." (13:25)

• Poll Question:
  Paulie tosses out: "Who's in a better position right now? John Harbaugh or the Baltimore Ravens?" (10:10)

5. Speculation: What Happens Next?

• Harbaugh is seen as highly employable, with the Giants frequently mentioned.

• Dan wonders, tongue-in-cheek, if teams like the Steelers (Mike Tomlin’s future uncertain), Bills (McDermott), or Eagles (Sirianni) might make changes and pursue Harbaugh.

• Ravens’ next move: speculation about whether they’ll look for youth/inexperience to “renovate” and “reinvigorate,” as they did previously with a then-special teams coach Harbaugh.

  "I think they're looking for a coach. It doesn't matter if it's offense or defense. I think they're looking for somebody to reinvigorate this franchise and I think it kind of grown a little stale around here." (23:33, Jamison Hensley)

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Jamison Hensley Interview Highlights (18:28–27:59)

Why Ask Lamar About Harbaugh?

• Hensley:

  "Lamar Jackson's the face of this franchise and his opinion carries a lot of weight. ...For Lamar to basically say, hey, you know what? I'm focusing on the loss... was pretty telling." (18:34, 19:17)

Was the Firing Surprising?

• Hensley:
  Most in Baltimore were bracing for change, but expected it at the coordinator level—not with Harbaugh himself.

  "I think it was more that everyone was thinking that it was going to be a change at the coordinator level. And I know up until yesterday that John Harbaugh was pretty comfortable that he was going to be proceeding as the head coach." (19:41)

Did Harbaugh Lose the Locker Room?

• Hensley:
  No overt loss. Team was still playing hard in key games, but the feeling was the Harbaugh era may have just “run its course.”

  "If John Harbaugh lost the locker room, they would have lost those games by a wide margin. ...But I will also say...after eight years, 18 years, he had kind of run his course here." (20:31)

What’s Next for the Ravens?

• Hensley:
  Owner Steve Bisciotti has a history of hiring against the grain ("thin resumes"). Next coach could be an up-and-comer, not a big name. Underlying priority: connect with Lamar Jackson.

  "So I think they need somebody to energize not only that locker room, but Lamar Jackson as well. ...It’s more about how do they connect with Lamar Jackson?" (23:33)

Where Will Harbaugh Land?

• Hensley:
  Sees Giants as a logical match but believes Harbaugh’s availability “changes everything,” even impacting jobs thought to be secure.

  "John Harbaugh is the number one candidate out there for a guy who changed the culture here with the Ravens...I think John Harbaugh being available changes everything." (24:20)

Lamar/Harbaugh Relationship

• Hensley:
  Harbaugh was steadfast in his support—through thick and thin—a “middle guy” between Jackson and critical voices on the staff.

  "No one has had the back of, of, of Lamar more than John Harbaugh." (25:37) "But at a certain point ...there's a certain shelf life when you're coaching Lamar Jackson and this coaching staff reached the end of it." (26:47)

Mike Tomlin’s Tenure as a Comparator

• Hensley:
  Both longtime coaches, both feeling the heat at the end; Harbaugh quoted Billie Jean King: "Pressure is a privilege." (27:17-27:26)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Dan on Coaching Change Risks:

  “After nearly two decades of relevance...the NFL doesn't reward nostalgia. It's what are you doing for me right now?” (07:16)

• Hensley on Lamar’s Loyalty:

  "No one has had the back of, of, of Lamar more than John Harbaugh. ...But at a certain point ...there's a certain shelf life when you're coaching Lamar Jackson and this coaching staff reached the end of it." (25:37, 26:47)

• Dan on Locker Room Dynamics:

  “How many guys are going to be there for five consecutive years? So you lose the locker room. When did you lose the locker room? And if so, who did you lose in that locker room?” (05:25)

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Time-stamped Key Segments

• 03:12 — Dan’s initial surprise and breakdown of Harbaugh firing
• 04:43 / 15:14 — Key Lamar Jackson “non-answer” on Harbaugh’s future
• 05:25 — Dan questions the meaning of “lost the locker room”
• 10:10 — Paulie introduces the “Harbaugh or Ravens: Who’s better off?” poll
• 18:28–27:59 — Interview with Jamison Hensley: insider’s perspective on the firing, locker room mood, future directions, and Lamar/Harbaugh dynamic
• 23:33 — ESPN's Hensley: Ravens want a coach who can “energize...Lamar Jackson as well”
• 24:20 — Hensley: Harbaugh is "number one candidate" for open jobs; changes entire coaching market

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Wrap-up & Takeaways

• Dan and the Danettes reflect on coach lifespans—no matter how legendary—being finite, both because of shifting team needs and inevitable staleness.
• Harbaugh’s market value is soaring; Ravens’ next hire is a pivotal moment for the franchise.
• The “locker room” narrative is complicated—sometimes it’s a few dissatisfied stars, sometimes just time for a new voice.
• More candid, less PR-driven commentary than usual, especially around Lamar’s ambivalence and the realities behind NFL “mutual partings.”

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For listeners who missed the episode: This hour is a must for understanding the real dynamics and shockwaves from Harbaugh’s ousting, complete with direct insight from inside the Ravens’ locker room and sharp, thoughtful analysis from Dan Patrick’s seasoned crew.

Transcript

[Jonas Knox]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Dan Patrick]

Guaranteed Human.

[Jonas Knox]

This is Jonas Knox from Two Pros and a Cup of Joe. And are you ready to tackle your financial goals but don't know where to start? Webull makes it simple to start investing now, no matter your experience. Powerful tools, real time data, all in one platform built for you. Don't sit on the sidelines. Visit webull.com or download the app and start with as little as $1 today. That's webull.com Webull Financial LLC member SIPC FINRA Investing involves risk. For more information, visit webull.com disclosures.

[Dan Patrick]

You are listening to the Dan Patrick show on Fox Sports Radio. Welcome to the program. It's hour one on this Wednesday. Dan and the Danettes, Dan Patrick show. Fritz, he's here. Seaton, Marv, Poly, yours truly and of course the very valuable backroom guys. Stat of the Day is always brought to you by Panini America. The official trading cards of the program. They've been doing it for over 40 years, helping you find the right tires for how and what and where you drive. Tire rack.com it's the way tire buying should be. Good morning. If you're watching on Peacock, our streaming partner of the NBC Sports Network and our radio affiliates around the country, we say good morning to them, including iHeartRadio and Fox Sports Radio. Poll question Play of the Day Stat of the Day Operator Tyler sitting by. He'll take your phone calls. I'm rarely shocked in this business after 40 years and I wasn't shocked yesterday. Was I surprised the Ravens moved on from John Harbaugh? I was because the first thing I thought was, what if they make that field goal and they beat the Steelers and they go into the playoffs? Because Ian Rapaport of NFL Network said that John Harbaugh had lost the locker room. Well, would he have still lost the locker room going into the playoffs? What if you win a playoff game? Can you win back the locker room? Was this a mutual parting? Because it didn't sound like that with John Harbaugh. He didn't want to go, but the Ravens decided to move on. John Harbaugh will get a job if he wants a job. I work with John at the super bowl in Minneapolis and he did a great job on tv. He was well prepared and had great stories. If he wants to go into tv. I know people talked about Mike Tomlin. John Harbaugh could have that avenue if he chooses to reach out to the networks or his agent. But he will get a job as soon as he was fired. One of my sources immediately said he'll be the Giants number one candidate. He's going to have jobs probably to pick from. Now here's the interesting part. You had Adam Schefter yesterday say that John Harbaugh's agent, within an hour of him being fired, I think she said maybe 45 minutes. You had all of these, like seven teams reached out to him. Okay, well, there's seven openings, including the Ravens. The Ravens, of course, didn't reach out to him. So then you have to maybe look at this and go, are there teams in the playoffs who may have reached out? Can they reach out quietly, third party? Because you don't want that to get out. If all of a sudden you're going to, wait a minute. I'm coaching a game and they're reaching out behind my back. I'm assuming there are coaches who think they're secure in their jobs who maybe didn't make the playoffs. I don't know if you could see a situation where all of a sudden the Buffalo Bills are reaching out or throw out a team that might be, you know, Nick Sirianni and the Eagles, if they would get bounced, would they reach out to John Harbaugh? Like, I don't know to what depth this goes, but there are. Imagine you're going to work and you're not quite sure if you're secure because you made it through Monday. And I think John Harbaugh probably thought, I made it through Monday, you didn't make it through Tuesday. And now all of a sudden he's on the outside looking in. But I go back to Lamar Jackson. I tried not to make a big deal about it. I wanted to be fair to Lamar Jackson. They lose the game to the Steelers in dramatic fashion. And I, you know, we listen to the interviews after the game, pick and choose what we want to use. And Marvin said, listen to this. And I said, wow, he could have answered that differently, but I was being fair to him that, you know, there's a cooling down period, not a long period. And then you go and meet with the media. Here is the question and Lamar's answer about John Harbaugh.

[Jonas Knox]

Do you want to see John remain the coach?

[Lamar Jackson]

Come back here? That's you. You asked me about next year, Jameson. Like, I'm so caught up in what just happened tonight. I can't, I can't focus on that right now. I just told you, like he asked me. Are you stunned? I'm stunned right now. I'm still trying to process what's going on. Like, I know we lost, but, like, you know, that's all.

[Dan Patrick]

No, no, no, no. Unless that's how he really felt, I don't want to worry about John Harbaugh. This was a terrible loss here. I'm processing this. But the easy way to answer that was yes, but hey, I don't want to talk about that now. I want to, you know, I'm trying to process. We just lost a game. Unless he doesn't want John Harbaugh back. Feels like there was something going on after 18 years. Like when they say you lose the locker room, well, how many players are there? Nobody's there for 18 years. It's rare when you have, you know, how many guys are going to be there for five consecutive years. So you lose the locker room. When did you lose the locker room? And if so, who did you lose in that locker room? Did you lose your quarterback? Did you lose Derrick Henry? At some point they had a team that was a Super bowl favorite team, a roster that was that talented. You had one of the top five rosters. Now, injuries happen with everybody, but, you know, you start to look at some of these moments that he's had. You know, Zay Flowers with a fumble, Mark Andrews with the drop ball last year, the missed kick that we just had. So you start to see these moments and then you have a moment where John Harbaugh has Derrick Henry standing next to him on the sidelines during a game and didn't really play in the second half. And I thought, well, is he injured? Because then we see him in the next game and he's running around like he's Red Grange, Jim Brown or just Derek Henry. And then you keep thinking, all right, something's, something's up. Is Lamar Jackson all in? Does Lamar Jackson put in the effort that he should as a high paid quarterback? You know, there, there's usually something there. When you keep hearing that there's something there. You know, defense didn't play at a, you know, an elite level that we've come to expect with the Ravens. But I'm always curious, when somebody loses the locker room, what exactly does that mean? How many people are involved in that, that you lost and what exactly did you lose their confidence in you. They didn't trust him anymore, didn't buy into what he was saying. And I go back to Andy Reid because the Eagles made a difficult decision with andy Reid after 14 seasons. And at the time it felt risky and it felt maybe premature. Okay, you're not going to win a Super Bowl. Okay, you're getting to NFC title games. So then he leaves. Eagles do prosper, but so does Andy Reid. The Patriots with Bill Belichick, you know, 24 seasons, you win six titles. They're in decline for a few years. They bring in Mike Vrabel and look at him this year. So after nearly two decades of relevance, you know, the NFL doesn't reward nostalgia. It's what are you doing for me right now? As Mike Tomlin may have found out, if Mike Tomlin lost that game against the Ravens, maybe there would have been a mutual parting. And it feels like if you're a Hall of Fame worthy coach, it should be a mutual parting. Not, not fired. John Harbaugh got fired. It feels like that. In the press release, they should say, you know what? We both decided it was a mutual parting. It wasn't a mutual parting because John Harbaugh did not want to go. But they got a really good owner. That front office has been great. They draft well, great fan base. They've had three head coaches and now they must know who they're getting because I've said this before, I even said it on Monday. I don't know if there's enough worthy candidates for all these openings. Well, Kevin Stefanski is getting a job and John Harbaugh is getting a job. And we don't even know the other jobs that may become available here in the next week or so. Now, you can't hire somebody right away. The Giants can't say, john Harbaugh, you're our guy. You have to go through the process. The Rooney rule. You have to do your interviews. But they can let his agent know, we want you, we're going to hire you. You tell us what your price is so you can get ahead of the game, behind, behind the curtain here. But there's going to be maybe one or two other openings from what I was told last night, that might surprise you. I talked about chaos in college football. My source said it's going to be chaos, you know, in the off season. Well, it is. I didn't know we would get chaos like this with the NFL. And we haven't even started the playoffs yet. Crazy. 877-3-DP-SHOP email address [e-mail] Twitter handle @DP Show Seaton Poll Question for hour one is going to be what?

[Paulie]

Who's in a better position right now? Jim Harbaugh? Excuse me, John Harbaugh or the Baltimore Ravens?

[Dan Patrick]

I would say John Harbaugh because he might be able to pick where he wants to go, get a fresh Start. You go to the Giants. You know, a lot of talent there. And once again there could. What if the. What if this here's. This is crazy. Maybe I should. I, it's too crazy. What if Mike Tomlin and the Steelers part ways and the Steelers reach out to John Harbaugh? Is that crazy?

[Todd]

As a theory, it's great, but it's hard to picture.

[Dan Patrick]

I know, but I.

[Todd]

Are you not supposed to do that? But you've been fired, so there's no loyalty anymore.

[Dan Patrick]

Oh, yeah, he has no loyalty there. But I, I just, I, I'm starting to wonder here what scenarios would open up here. Maybe the Steelers and Ravens has trade coaches. How about that? Could have done that. Well, you can't do that this week because Mike's got a game coming up this weekend. But you, you know, Matt LaFleur with the packers feels weird and his contract has been, you know, kind of hanging there and you know, what, what were they, 9, 7 and 1? What if they beat. What if they don't beat the Bears this weekend? So I, you know, once again, I, you just start to speculate here of the, the possible scenarios, and I'm not shocked that John got fired from the Ravens after 18 years. But it feels like, all right, we know who we can bring in and what are you bringing in? You always bring in the opposite of what you had before. So who are you bringing in? What is that personality? Yes, Marvin.

[Marv]

Dan. It's the parting of ways.

[Dan Patrick]

Oh, that's right.

[Todd]

Sanitizing.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah. Parting of ways. Yes. Todd. What if the Bills lose badly at the Jaguars? What if the Eagles do poorly against the Niners? What is the coaching situation for McDermott and Sirianni after something like that happens? I think it's a fair question to ask. I don't know. It feels like Sirianni should get a Hall pass if they would happen to lose, but it feels. That's another one that feels weird if Buffalo gets roughed up. I don't know. I don't like change for change sake. And it felt like Baltimore was change for change. Like we have to change. I don't know who we're getting, but you know we're going to change. Yes, Marv.

[Marv]

Yeah. The pressure is on McDermott because there's no Lamar, there's no Momes. You can't lose in the first round. No to Jacksonville. I don't care how good Jacksonville is. You can't like just the, the optics of you losing to the Jaguars is a terrible look. I know both Josh Allen also, I Know.

[Dan Patrick]

I know it. It's. You can't say everybody is secure like it feels like they should be. Yes, Todd, especially, as we've said before, in a year, no Mahomes, no Burrow, no Lamar Jackson. This is supposed to be the year the Bills at least get to the super bowl, if not win it all, which would make it even worse if they bow out early. And, you know, as I learned a long time ago, letting go of a legend is never easy, but sometimes it is necessary. I mean, I go back to the Cowboys with Tom Landry. Like, I couldn't fathom that Tom Landry got fired, like, Tom Landry got fired. But that was, you know, Jimmy and Jerry, and they're coming in, and they came in as a package deal. So, you know, you start to look at, you know, everybody's kind of vulnerable. And certainly in today's sports society, it just feels like everything is tenuous. Like, man, that guy's locked in until, like, you know, Kansas City Chiefs fans were bummed out about Andy Reid. Andy Reid is on scholarship as long as he wants to, it seems like, but I don't know. Could he lose the locker room, whatever that means? My head coach in basketball in college, he lost the locker room, and we lost all of our games, too, so it really didn't matter. We were both losers. You lost locker room. Well, you guys lose all the games. We're meant for each other. Give me a hug, Coach. Yes, Paul.

[Todd]

And then you hit the portal, didn't you?

[Dan Patrick]

Yes, I heard.

[Todd]

I don't know if that's true.

[Dan Patrick]

I hit the porta potty. That was it. That was. I got flushed down. I was gone. All righty, we'll get your phone calls. More on the Ravens coming up. And we'll talk to Jameson Hensley, ESPN Ravens reporter. Was he the one asking Lamar that question? Play that again. This is the question that he asked.

[Jonas Knox]

Do you want to see John remain the coach?

[Lamar Jackson]

You asked me about next year, Jameson, Like, I'm so caught up in what just happened tonight. I can't. I can't focus on that right now. I just told you, like, he ask me. Are you stunned? I'm stunned right now. I'm still trying to process what's going on. Like, I know we lost, but. But, you know, that's all.

[Dan Patrick]

You just lost the sports emmy. How do you feel about your wife? Ah, come on. You can't ask me if I love my wife. I just lost the sports emmy Here. Now that's where you say, I love my wife. Let me talk about sports Emmy. Like you have to say that unless you really feel like you don't want him back. More on that coming up. We'll get to your phone calls as well. Let's see, who else do we have on the program? Oh, Dan Orlovsky from the Mothership and Tony Dungy will stop by as well. Just getting started back after this Dan Patrick Show. Be sure to catch the live edition of the Dan Patrick show weekdays at 9am Eastern, 6am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio in the iHeartRadio app. Hey, it's Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington.

[Jonas Knox]

From the Odd Couple on Fox Sports Radio. And in addition to hearing us live weeknights from 7 to 10pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio, we are excited to.

[Lamar Jackson]

Announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.

[Jonas Knox]

That's right, you can now watch the Odd couple live on YouTube every day. All you got to do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube again. YouTube. Just search Odd Couple FSR.

[Lamar Jackson]

Check us out on YouTube and subscribe.

[Jonas Knox]

This is Jonas Knox from Two Pros and a Cup of Joe. And are you ready to tackle your financial goals? Kick off your journey with WE Bull who makes it simple to start investing powerful tools, next level data and an easy to use platform for stocks, ETFs, prediction markets and more. Whether you're on the go or trading overnight, We Bull is built for you and your schedule. Don't sit on the sidelines, visit we bull.com or download the app and take control of your financial future today. Start with just $1. That's weble.com we bull financial LLC member sipc finra investing involves risk. For more information visit weble.com disclosures we'll.

[Dan Patrick]

Settle on a poll question. Get to your phone calls coming up. Dan Orlovsky next hour. Tony Dungey will drop by as well. Jameson Hensley has been covering the Ravens for the mothership since 2013 and I played a piece of sound after the game and I thought it was a great question and telling answer. Let me play for play for you that question again and what the situation was after losing a tough game. Lamar Jackson's answer or non answer?

[Jonas Knox]

Do you want to see John remain.

[Lamar Jackson]

The coach for next year? You asked me about next year Jameson. I'm so caught up and what just happened tonight. I can't, I can't focus on that right now. I just told you like he asked me. Are you stunned? I'm stunned right now. I'm still trying to process what's going on. Like I know we lost but what the. Like you Know, that's all the man.

[Dan Patrick]

Who asked the question. Jameson Hensley joining us now. What made you ask the question in that moment?

[Jonas Knox]

Just because Lamar Jackson's the face of this franchise and his opinion carries a lot of weight. And when John Harbaugh is in his 18th season and you have a Super bowl favorite team not make the playoffs, there's going to be a lot of questions about John Harbaugh's job security. We've been asking John Harbaugh about his job security for two weeks, and I just thought it was time for Lamar Jackson to have his chance to weigh in. And I believe if I asked him, hey, do you want Derek Henry to be your running back? Do you want Zay Flowers to be a wide receiver? He would have said, oh, yes. You know, I definitely want to play with those guys. But for Lamar to play, basically say, hey, you know what? I'm focusing on the loss. For him to not give John Harbaugh a vote of confidence at that point was pretty telling, too.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah, I thought so. I was trying to be fair to him because I don't know that separation of game ends, cooling down period, then you go to the press conference. But you got to say yes in that moment just to, you know, keep reporters like you off the scent there. But what if. What if the field goal is good?

[Jonas Knox]

No, I don't think that changes anything.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay.

[Jonas Knox]

I don't. I think the news was surprising. I think everyone was bracing for change. I think it was more that everyone was thinking that it was going to be a change at the coordinator level. And I know up until yesterday that John Harbaugh was pretty comfortable that he was going to be proceeding as the head coach of the Ravens. Things changed in that afternoon. I've talked to a lot of people in this building here at the Raven facility. Still have not found a definitive answer. I don't think there will be one definitive. I think it's a culmination of things. But we're at a point now where the Ravens are searching for their first head coach since 2008. I mean, Dan, the last time I covered a coaching search, I think I had a flip phone.

[Dan Patrick]

Losing the locker room.

[Jonas Knox]

Yeah.

[Dan Patrick]

What does that mean? Is that a real story?

[Jonas Knox]

I. I've been in that locker room for 26 years, and I was there for the past few weeks. I did not get that sense. I will say there are. There were players in that locker room that were not pro John Harbaugh. And I will say after the game, not only did we ask Lamar Jackson, we Asked running back Derek Henry, we asked offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley, do you want to see John Harbaugh return as head coach? And both of those guys said, hey, we love John Harbaugh, but that's not our decision. So it wasn't like this huge support for John Harbaugh. But I think there was, if you look at the last couple of games at Green Bay where it was a must win, at Pittsburgh was must win. If, if John Harbaugh lost the locker room, they would have lost those games by a wide margin. They were still fighting. And those. And I think that is a sign that John Harbaugh hadn't lost that locker room. But I will also say that there's a feeling that Harbaugh, after eight years, 18 years, he had kind of run his course here and he had LaMar Jackson for nine or eight years, three playoff wins, maybe the perception was maybe it was time to give somebody else a chance because Mark Jackson's not going to play forever. Maybe it was another chance to give somebody else see if they can take Lamar Jackson to new heights.

[Dan Patrick]

What, what are the Ravens plans now?

[Jonas Knox]

Yeah, that's my knee jerk reaction. Once I heard John Harbaugh was, was fired. I was like, okay, who is next? Well, you look at this roster, I mean they have had dozen of Pro bowl players. They have a two time MVP in Lamar Jackson. They got to bring somebody with a big name established. You just can't. But then I also thought back to 2008 when they introduced John Harbaugh as the next head coach. And this is a special teams guy. I mean he was the second pick to Jason Garrett after Jason Garrett turned it down. And Ravens owner Steve Bishadi made the point back then that he made a career in his business for selecting guys with thin resumes by hitting on those guys. And how do you separate yourself from the masses? This is from Bachati. How do you separate, separate yourself from the masses? Well, you go against the grain. You don't follow the masses, you don't follow the general thinking. So I don't know. Sure he takes a coach that has been a head coach before. I think he takes great pride in selecting John Harbaugh and having him have a Hall of Fame type career here in Baltimore. So it wouldn't surprise me if he goes for a younger coach, maybe doesn't have head coaching experience because that has been his history.

[Dan Patrick]

Well, there's Clint Cube, Clint Kubiak, there's Chris Shula. Like there's younger guys that have Jesse.

[Jonas Knox]

Minter as well, Jesse Mitchell's, are going.

[Dan Patrick]

To with the Chargers. So I don't know if they're going offense or defense. Could you see them leaning one way or another of what type of coach they're bringing in?

[Jonas Knox]

I think they're looking for a coach. It doesn't matter if it's offense or defense. I think they're looking for somebody to reinvigorate this franchise and I think it kind of grown a little stale around here. And so I think they need somebody to renovate to really kind of energize not only that locker room, but Lamar Jackson as well. And I think that is when whoever takes over for the Ravens, that is going to be the key. How do they connect with Lamar Jackson? Because not only is he the face of this franchise, he is the leader and he as this team goes, as Lamar goes, this team goes. So I think that is going to be the priority. It's more, not more of offense, defense, but how do they connect with Lamar Jacks?

[Dan Patrick]

Where does John Harbaugh end up? That.

[Jonas Knox]

That is also a very good question. And as much as I think the Ravens now become the, the number one destination for any available coach, John Harbaugh is the number one candidate out there for a guy who changed the culture here with the Ravens who turn this team from, yeah, you know, good playoff team under Billock, you know, but they have, you know, kind of gone off the, off the tracks a little bit. He turned them into a perennial super bowl contender. And I mean you look at his resume as being and he's adapted over the years. He'll acknowledge that he is a players coach. I've talked to players. They say he is his best when, you know, it's, it's tough times. So I think he would relish the chance to go to a New York Giants team that has a lot of good players, a great roster. But I also think there could be some teams out there that have head coaches, maybe, maybe Miami Dolphins, where he could go there as well. I think John Harbaugh being available changes everything. It changes even teams that have. It just changes the coaching search immediately.

[Dan Patrick]

You know, the thing that really kind of surprised me with Lamar's non answer when you asked the question was nobody has had his back more than John Harbaugh did.

[Jonas Knox]

Without a doubt.

[Dan Patrick]

But.

[Jonas Knox]

Without a doubt.

[Dan Patrick]

But it felt like there was a disconnect at some point.

[Jonas Knox]

Yeah. And I, I will say, Dan, I mean like you said, no one has had the back of, of, of Lamar more than John Harbaugh. I mean, you go back to that 2019 playoff game. I'm sorry, 2018 playoff game. Lamar's first playoff game, and he's struggling. And Joe. Joe Flacco is on the sideline, and there's fans chanting, chanting, Flacco. Flacco. Put this guy back in there. Your Super Bowl. And he didn't. He stayed with Lamar. And I think that was a big turning point, not only for this franchise, but also the relationship of Lamar and Harbaugh. And I think they had a good relationship. I think for John, he was kind of the middle guy between. Where there was some friction between Lamar Jackson and some of the coaching staff as well. And I think he was the middle guy, and I think he tried to hold it together as well as he could. But at a certain point, as someone told me, there's a certain shelf life when you're coaching Lamar Jackson and this coaching staff reached the end of it.

[Dan Patrick]

If the Steelers had lost. Finish that sentence with Mike Tomlin.

[Jonas Knox]

Oh, yeah. I mean, that's a very interesting question because, I mean, you got the two most tenured coaches in the NFL, and John Harbaugh was even asked about that kind of Mike Tomlin and him. Will this game be a referendum on your kind of both of your coaching. Your job securities for both coaches?

[Dan Patrick]

And I thought Tomlin was on the hot seat, James. Right.

[Jonas Knox]

Yeah. But, I mean, Harpal gave a great quote. He quoted Billie Jean King, the Tennis hall of Famer, saying, you know what? Pressure is a privilege.

[Dan Patrick]

And.

[Jonas Knox]

And it's a privilege to be on the hot seat because it means, you know what?

[Dan Patrick]

You're.

[Jonas Knox]

You're doing something that you love. And so I will say this about John Harbaugh, that for a guy that has been around for almost two decades and was kind of being asked some tough questions about his job over the last two weeks, he handled it very, very well. And I. And someone told me, as yesterday after the news had kind of broken, that John Harbaugh is at peace with this decision, and he kind of feels that it was a. It's good to be a reset, not only for the franchise, but for him as well.

[Dan Patrick]

Great stuff. I know you're busy. Thanks for taking time.

[Jonas Knox]

Thank you so much, Dan. Really appreciate it.

[Dan Patrick]

All right. Jameson Hensley, ESPN Ravens reporter since 2013. Been in the building for over a couple of decades there. You get a feel when you're around a team on a daily basis. It's amazing. And you talk to beat reporters, and they know, because, you know, body language, what you hear, how you hear it, the enthusiasm, lack thereof. Like, there, there's just, there's something that's there that sometimes nothing needs to be said, but you get a sense. And maybe there was a malaise that was kind of hanging over these, you know, this franchise there. And you can sense that sometimes you get excited. Like, I, I worry about that. I've worried about that with this show where we've been together for a couple of decades. And you want to make sure every day. That's why I always say, and you guys joke, every day is the Super Bowl. Like, I, I, I want to reinvigorate. I always want to make sure that we approach that next day the same way as we did the day before. There's no off days. You know, every interview is important. Like it, that that's on your mind. If you're leading people, you're coaching people, managing people, and sometimes you forget about it or you take each other for granted. And that can happen, certainly. I remember the Lakers Laker player just said, you know, we had tuned out Pat Riley. And I said, what do you mean by that? He said, we just got tired of the same message. Well, the team had been together, and there's only, you know, 12 or 13 players. It's different than a football team. But you can grow tired of a basketball coach quicker than a football coach professionally, in my opinion, because it's constant. And with football, there's a lot of credit and blame to go around. There's 53 players, if not more with the practice squad, but with basketball, I just remember, here's Pat Riley. But Riles, work them hard. Yes, Mark.

[Marv]

No, I was with you. Absolutely. I was just nodding my head like you had it.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay, Pat Riley. Yeah, I'm, I'm sure the Celtics tuned out Red Arbach or the packers tuned out Vince Lombardi after a while. You know, the famous quote of Lombardi might have been Paul Horning, who said it. You know, he treats everybody the same. Like dogs. It's like, yep, you know, even Mike Krzyzewski, when I got to see one of his practices, I was like, wow, I don't know if I could stay four years. Not that he would want me to stay, but four years. And you're hearing that because Coach K in practice, and that's when they're playing for national championships. But he learned from Bob Knight. I don't know how you could survive Bob Knight. Not for four years. Yes, Marv.

[Marv]

That's why Isaiah Thomas was only there for two.

[Dan Patrick]

Yes. Bob probably should have left after one year, although he got a national Championship. Yes. Yes.

[Paulie]

Sometimes it just runs its course, though.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah.

[Paulie]

17 years is a long time.

[Dan Patrick]

Long time.

[Paulie]

That's a really long time. Sometimes it's just a little stale. Maybe we need to shake things up. It's been a good run. Let's just get some new energy in here, new blood.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah, Paulie.

[Todd]

And it's almost like you need an opportunity to move on because John Harbaugh hasn't given many opportunities. Six of the last eight years, they were in the playoffs. Six of the last eight yearsS, they won 11 plus games. And this year their defense was ranked 18th. That's an anomaly. They've been a top nine defense or top five, actually, eight of the last nine years.

[Dan Patrick]

But the ESPN reporter was saying even if this was a foregone conclusion, in his opinion, if they won that game against the Steelers, if they want a playoff game, like, how crazy is that? Let's say you get on a run and all of a sudden you go to the AFC title game or you go to the Super Bowl. Does he lose the locker room? Yes, Marv.

[Marv]

Even with guys like Bobby Knight and Bill Belichick, where they might be hard on their players and hard on the organization. You know what? We're tired of this because you're not producing like you used to. We put up with it because you were producing winning results.

[Dan Patrick]

If you know you're playing for championships and that's the common theme with these coaches. I brought up Lombardi, you're, you're, you're coaching. You're playing in championship games. Bob Knight, you're playing in big games. Mike Krzyzewski in big games. Bill Parcells in big games. Oh, that's, that's the difference. You know, when you're playing and your team isn't any good, but your coach is just all over you, you're like, yeah, we need to change. Yes. Paulie.

[Todd]

I went back and looked at Lamar Jackson's stats, and it's fascinating. He'll have an MVP season, then he'll have a nice year for him. Good for anybody else. The past two years. You know, last year he had 41 touchdowns and four picks. You kind of forget about that. That's like, that's like peak Aaron Rodgers passing stats. And then this year it was 21 touchdowns, seven picks. It was just benign.

[Dan Patrick]

And he's not running as much. And look, this happens, this happens with mobile quarterbacks, that after a while you're just like, you know what? I'm going to run less. I'm going to make a concerted effort. To run less. And this will happen to Josh Allen at some point in his career. But you, all of these quarterbacks, at some point, you go, I need to preserve myself. Oh, you guys don't think the Josh Allen's capable of not running as much? I still think that he'll. He'll be opportunistic. Sometimes you run because you've made one read and then you tuck the ball and go. Steve Young talked about that when he was first coming up with Tampa Bay, even the Niners, it'd be like, it's not there. I'm going to take off and run. You know, as you learn the game, you know, you go through your progressions, and then maybe you'll run less. You remember Lamar Jackson? He couldn't throw. All the critics. Oh, he can't throw. I said, no, he can't throw the way you want him to throw. As a perfect pocket passer, he can throw. He threw 41 touchdowns. Yes.

[Todd]

Paulie, I'm looking at Lamar Jackson's running stats. Four years ago, he averaged 11 running attempts per game. This year, it was 5.2, by far the lowest of his career. Here's a question I would love to know. Was he told to do that? Was he told to do that by the offensive coordinator and was that part of the problem?

[Dan Patrick]

I don't think. I don't think the offensive coordinator would say that to Lamar Jackson.

[Todd]

It felt like there was very much less in the read option play this year. Again, I don't watch every Ravens.

[Dan Patrick]

I think. I think just trying to prevent. Trying to be on the field. It happens to all these quarterbacks. After a while, you just go, nah. Yeah, Seaton. Yeah.

[Paulie]

There is constant pressure for mobile quarterbacks to stop running so much. That is sort of a constant narrative. By the way, I just wanted to give you a quick shout out for saying perfect pocket passer so easily.

[Dan Patrick]

Oh, thank you.

[Paulie]

That's not easy to do. I just. It didn't go unnoticed.

[Dan Patrick]

Thank you. Well, once again, every day is the Super Bowl. All right, come on, let's go. Come on. Who's with me?

[Marv]

Let's do it.

[Dan Patrick]

I ordered. I ordered breakfast burritos.

[Todd]

Let's go.

[Dan Patrick]

Ever since breakfast burritos, brothers. Let's take a break. Our play of the day is next. Fox sports radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our [e-mail] and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to listen live.

[Jonas Knox]

This is Jonas Knox from Two Pros and a cup of Joe and are you ready to tackle your financial goals? Kick off your journey with Webull who makes it simple to start investing powerful tools, next level data and an easy to use platform for stocks, ETFs, prediction markets and more. Whether you're on the go or trading overnight, we Bull is built for you and your schedule. Don't sit on the sidelines, visit we bull.com or download the app and take control of your financial future today. Start with just $1. That's webull.com Webull Financial LLC member SIPC FINRA investing involves risk. For more information, visit weble.com disclosures oh my God.

[Dan Patrick]

The play of the day. This is the play of the day. Check this out.

[Jonas Knox]

Clock issues now before Luca stumbles has.

[Dan Patrick]

It at the pressure that is Luca Magic the gun for three. That's five consecutive games with at least 30. Lakers have won three in a row. Courtesy of Spectrum Sportsnet that's your play of the day. Have you ever used dry toilet paper? Wondering is this as good as it gets? It's not. Switch to life changing wet extra large flushable dude wipes because wetter just got better dude wipes best clean, pants down Poll results Seaton from the first hour.

[Paulie]

Yeah we got up there right now. Who is in a better position today, John Harbaugh or the Baltimore Ravens? Early results have John Harbaugh running away with this this.

[Dan Patrick]

Okay Cody in California. Hi cody.

[Caller]

Hey, morning boys. Five seven one six. So you know I'm a Niner fan, Marv. Bang bang, not a gang. But I kind of can relate because you know we got we got the same situation. I feel like often hearing knowing with the Niners and Shanahan, you know he gets a lot of credit for and don't get me wrong, I love having a dog in a fight every year.

[Dan Patrick]

Thank you, Cody. Kyle Shanahan's a great coach. Great coach. You're lucky. He did a great job this year with your team. Chris in Syracuse. Hi Chris.

[Caller]

Hey, thanks Dan. A couple of things to throw at you. Hey, if you guys get a chance, listen to the Auburn play by play guy. They hit a long three pointer to win at the buzzer and they went bonkers. And then it ended up being negated on a video review. And I wonder with John Harbaugh's availability if that'll create a black Wednesday. And if I were Aaron Glenn, I'd turn off my phone and I thought I heard somebody say last night that the Ravens wanted to get rid of one of their coordinators and Harbaugh would not CO sign on it. And I think the Ravens should go after Stefanski. He certainly knows the AFC north and was a two time coach of the year while in the AFC North. And look, Mark Jackson, he's only 28, has never had an offensive minded head coach and I'm sure Stefanski would relish staying in the division and having a shot at sticking to his former employer twice a year.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah, that's not far fetched at all. Stefanski is going to get a job. John Harbaugh will get a job. But then you want to know, or we want to know some of these, is Brian Flores going to get a job? Is he going to get the Raiders job? Cliff Kingsbury, that was surprising. Now I don't know. That might have been a mutual parting and maybe Cliff thought and it felt like there was once again another disconnect going on between head coach and his coordinators. But to have both leave after you have Jaden Daniels by all accounts the best young quarterback and all of a sudden Cliff Kingsbury is on the outside looking in. But maybe he thought, hey, I can get another head coaching job. I'd like to try this one more time and I'm going to go and I don't have any insight into any of these, you know, certainly what went on with the Ravens. Now I had heard as well that you know, Harbaugh was not going to fire his offensive coordinator, Todd Monkin. And I don't know if that led to, you know, the mutual parting here and I don't know what happened with the commanders. All I know is what, you know, what we've read. Let's see. Andrew in Washington. Hi Andrew.

[Caller]

Good morning. Dan Dennett's last time saying it, but happy New Year. You know, losing a locker room, it can be characterized by different things, I guess. And we've seen them from the Ravens, drops, passes, less effort, missed field goals and questionable coaching decisions. It's not exactly, you know, oh, you know, they're not going to listen to him anymore. But like you said with Pat Riley, they just tuned the message. You know, John Harbaugh was 45 years old when he was hired. He's now 63. Not much of your base, you know, beliefs and, and systems and ways you go about things are going to change between those 18 years of life, between 45 and 63 for anybody. So yeah, it probably got old and stale and he needs to move on. It doesn't mean that he's not a good coach for a new group, but it just meant for this group it was it was time to go. You know, you got to remember back in October, we had the whole like, oh, they had the games taken out of the locker room type of deal and was that John Harbo and Lamar Jackson?

[Dan Patrick]

Me.

[Caller]

So, I mean, there were things going on in the background in that. But he will be highly regarded. I don't know why he would want to go to Miami though. That's a worse situation to go to. He can have the pick of the crop for him. So again, these, these franchises need to realize, are they firing somebody just to get somebody less or do they have somebody more in mind? So that was my thing on that. But with Fernando Mendoza and Kurt Signetti now out there as a sort of story, why isn't anybody saying about Dion prime time Sanders to the Brown to coach his son should door.

[Dan Patrick]

Yeah, that's, that's not going to happen. You know, Dion has got to decide, you know, is he healthy enough to continue at Colorado? I mean, that, that story was under the radar. They didn't play well, but it was about his health. But yeah, Cleveland is not going to bring in Dion. I don't know if Cleveland is going to stay with Shador Sanders. So now you're going to bring in Dion. What if, you know, all of a sudden Chador doesn't play well and he's not your starter and how's that going to go over? That's not a situation where I would want to put a team in. Chris Shula. According to BET online, he is opened up as the favorite. He is the grandson of former Colts head coach Don Shula. Right now, the favorite, Chris Shula. Jesse Minter, defensive coordinator with the Chargers, is second. Then it's Cliff Kingsbury, Brian Flores, Kevin Stefanski and Clint Kubiak. Yes. Morph.

[Marv]

Did they say former Colts head coach Don Shul? Like he didn't coach anywhere else.

[Dan Patrick]

Well, it is Baltimore. It's the Baltimore Ravens. Baltimore Colts. You see what I did with that, Marvin? I guess. Yeah. No one knew like he was in Baltimore.

[Marv]

How many people knew he coached a Colts.

[Dan Patrick]

I did.

[Todd]

Also had a stint in Miami.

[Dan Patrick]

Dan Orlovsky is going to join us. Coming up, Hour two on the way, right after this.

[Jonas Knox]

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This is an iHeart podcast.

[Dan Patrick]

Guaranteed Human.