The Baltimore Ravens made plenty of headlines late on Thursday night when they announced that they are hiring now-former University of Michigan defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald to be their new defensive coordinator. Macdonald had been tabbed as the favorite for the position on Wednesday, and the rumors quickly became true.
Macdonald spent the first seven years of his professional coaching career in Baltimore, working a multitude of roles. He established himself with the Ravens, and was then hired away by Jim Harbaugh and Michigan, where Macdonald had plenty of success. He was a key reason for the university’s turnaround, and earned rave reviews from his fellow coaches, players, and the Michigan media.
In coming back to the Ravens, Macdonald will now take over a defense that has a storied past, but admittedly struggled in many areas over the course of the 2021 season under then-defensive coordinator Don Martindale. Tackling, miscommunications, big plays, finishing, passing defense and more were key points of contention, and while the unit was a top rushing defense, Baltimore and Martindale decided to part ways after four seasons.
