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Todd Monken pushes back on reports of rift between John Harbaugh, Lamar Jackson

Meby: Nick Geddes01/09/26NickGeddesNews

The Baltimore Ravens fired head coach John Harbaugh on Tuesday, bringing an end to his tenure after 18 seasons. Since then, everyone has been trying to figure out what went wrong in Baltimore.

Some reports suggested a rift between Harbaugh and two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson. Offensive coordinator Todd Monken did not see anything throughout his three seasons in Baltimore that led him to believe the two were not on the same page, he said Thursday on the Ryan Ripken Show.

“Lamar and I, to me, had a good relationship. Could it have been better? Of course,” Monken said. “Lamar and I never had an issue. I don’t know where that comes from. I never saw Lamar and coach Harbaugh not have a great relationship, I never saw that. I never saw coach Harbaugh and any of our players not have a great relationship. Never, not one time. So, any of that would be news to me, but I don’t know how people feel.”

NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported that Harbaugh had lost the locker room. ESPN‘s Adam Schefter pushed back on that report during a Wednesday appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.”

“I don’t think that information right there could be any less true,” Schefter said. “The players coming into his office crying, hugging him, sending him goodbyes, calling him one by one. If they felt that way, why are Mark Andrews and Zay Flowers, and Isaiah Likely, and all these players coming in crying, hugging him, giving these long, warm goodbyes? I’m not buying that.”

John Harbaugh will have a new job in 2026

The Ravens finished the 2025 season 8-9, missing out on the postseason for the first time since 2021. It was a season full of injuries, most notably, Jackson missed three games with a hamstring issue and another due to a back bruise. The Ravens, who had a top six offense in the first two seasons with Monken calling plays, fell outside the top 10.

Monken took on some of the responsibility. He believes he could have gotten more out of Jackson and the offense.

“You know what? I didn’t coach Lamar well enough,” Monken said. “I didn’t have as good a relationship as I could’ve. I didn’t do the things we needed this year to win enough games to give ourselves a chance.”

Baltimore will move forward without Harbaugh and without Monken in 2026. Jackson, however, will be there, along with a new coaching staff. Monken will be cheering him on from afar.

“I’m gonna fight like hell to fix it,” Monken said. “I’m gonna fight like hell for the next job I get and I’m going to root like hell for the Ravens.”