Coaching Pipeline: Ravens’ Staff Produces Another Head Coaching Candidate

The Baltimore Ravens have seen quite a few coordinators leave for head-coaching opportunities elsewhere, with former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald being the most recent example. A special teams coordinator, though? That would be a first for them.

On Wednesday, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero released a list of 22 young coaches (under 45) to watch in the upcoming hiring cycle, and Ravens special teams coordinator Chris Horton, 39, made the cut.

“A former NFL safety, Horton joined the Ravens as a coaching intern in 2014, was promoted to assistant special teams coach the following year and succeeded Jerry Rosburg for the top job in 2019,” Pelissero wrote. “Horton has a presence and the trust of John Harbaugh, a former special teams coordinator himself. The Ravens finished No. 1 in Rick Gosselin’s special teams rankings in 2021 and No. 3 in 2022 before slipping to the middle of the pack last year. Harbaugh has given Horton ownership over the operation and Horton has run with it, coaching up players from both sides of the ball.”

Horton boasts an impressive resume, but there’s a big obstacle standing in the way of him, or any other special teams coordinator, becoming a head coach.

Through NFL history, there have only been two coaches who were promoted directly from special teams coordinator to head coach: Joe Judge with the New York Giants in 2020 and Frank Gansz with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1987. Both were fired after two seasons, Judge posting a record of 10-23 and Gansz a record of 8-22-1. Even disregarding the results, other reasons exist for special teams coaches not getting many looks as head coaches, most notably that they aren’t as splashy as offensive or even defensive coordinators.

Now there have been more coaches that coached special teams, then coached another unit before making the jump to head coach. That group includes greats such as Dick Vermiel Bill Cowher, Bill Belichick and even Baltimore’s own John Harbaugh. Unfortunately their success hasn’t led to more special teams coaches getting looks.

“I thought it would change,” Harbaugh told USA TODAY Sports in May. “I thought if I was able to be successful, that it would open the door for those guys, and I think a lot of those guys felt that way as well. It hasn’t been the case. Nobody’s been hired who was mainly a special teams coordinator in their career. I’ve got to be honest: That’s been a disappointment.”

Time will tell if Horton gets the chance the Ravens believe he deserves, but in the meantime, he’s a valuable part of a coaching staff that has its sights set on the Super Bowl.