Declan Doyle didn’t need long to put his stamp on the Ravens offense.
In his first real test as Baltimore’s offensive coordinator, Doyle helped Lamar Jackson open the season looking nothing like a quarterback trying to bounce back from a difficult 2025 campaign. Jackson finished 17-of-25 for 324 yards and a touchdown, added four carries for 40 yards, and scored again on the ground in Baltimore’s 41-23 win.
For a player who entered the year with plenty of questions after injuries limited his mobility and helped push his sack rate to 10.6 percent last season, that was a sharp answer.
Jackson had one of the roughest statistical seasons of his recent run in 2025. His 63.6 percent completion rate was his lowest since 2022, his 21 passing touchdowns were his fewest since that same season, and his 6.0 net yards per attempt matched his lowest mark since 2022. The biggest drop-off came on the ground: after averaging 956 rushing yards per 17 games across his first eight seasons, he managed only 349 yards and two touchdowns a year ago.
That’s why Baltimore spent the offseason trying to put him back in position to thrive, and why Jesse Minter’s decision to hire Doyle mattered so much.
Doyle may be just 30, but the early return was exactly what the Ravens were hoping for. The connection to Ben Johnson’s work with Caleb Williams only added to the logic.
Doyle handled key scheme and prep duties and worked closely with Williams on a daily basis, helping guide a season in which Williams threw for 3,942 yards, 27 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Williams, like Jackson, brings a dual-threat element, and that made Doyle’s fit in Baltimore look obvious before the season even kicked off.
On Sunday, it looked even better.
Jackson’s biggest strike came on a 54-yard touchdown to Zay Flowers, and the two kept finding each other throughout the afternoon. Flowers ended up with five catches for 150 yards before a hamstring injury took him out for most of the second half. Jackson also spread the ball around, completing passes to nine different teammates and targeting 10 players overall.
That variety had the Colts’ defense spinning and helped set up a huge day for the running game. Jackson got Baltimore on the board with a five-yard touchdown run, and Derrick Henry powered the rest of the way with 24 carries for 144 yards and three touchdowns.
Baltimore has no shortage of explosive pieces, but Week 1 suggested Doyle may have found the right way to wire them together. Flowers’ hamstring issue is a concern, but if Jackson keeps playing like this, the Ravens can absorb plenty.
If Sunday is any indication, Jackson is back in the mix for his third MVP award, and Baltimore’s gamble on Doyle is already looking smart.
In Other News...
Zay Flowers Exit Leaves Ravens Facing An Immediate Passing Game Concern
Zay Flowers had already given the Ravens exactly the kind of explosive start they wanted in Week 1 against Indianapolis, piling up five catches for 150 yards and a touchdown before leaving late in the second quarter with a hamstring injury. He was listed as questionable to return at halftime and was spotted on the sideline without a helmet as the second half began, a frustrating turn for a Baltimore passing game that had leaned on his big-play ability early.
For a Ravens offense that has spent much of camp trying to sharpen its aerial rhythm, losing Flowers in the middle of such a productive afternoon was an immediate concern. His availability for the rest of the game was the first question, but the larger one was how Baltimore would handle the passing attack if the injury kept him from being a full-participant going forward. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Enter Week 1 With One Big Question Against The Colts
The Ravens open their season on the road against the Colts, and the biggest storyline is the first game of the Jesse Minter era after the club moved on from longtime coach John Harbaugh. Baltimore kept its core intact, including Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry, and also added veteran help on the edge with Calais Campbell and Trey Hendrickson, giving this roster a familiar backbone even as the sideline changes around it.
Indianapolis brings its own set of questions into Week 1 after a season that started well before fading late, and the hope there is that better health from players such as Daniel Jones and DeForest Buckner can spark a rebound. For Baltimore, though, this feels like an early test of how quickly a new coaching staff can settle in, especially on the road against a team that believes it still has more upside than it showed a year ago. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Offense Suddenly Has A Zay Flowers Problem
Zay Flowers was in the middle of one of the Ravens best receiving stretches of the season before things suddenly changed. The young wideout piled up five catches for first downs and 150 receiving yards, repeatedly giving Baltimore the kind of explosive playmaking it has been looking for under rookie offensive coordinator Declan Doyle.
Then the hamstring issue surfaced and Flowers was forced out early, turning a breakout afternoon into a genuine concern for a Ravens offense that has leaned on his speed and separation. He remains questionable to return, and while Baltimore has not officially ruled him out, the uncertainty alone puts the rest of the game in a different light for an offense that was just finding its rhythm through him. [Read more 🡒]