We’re a few days into another week of Ravens training camp, and we have a few storylines, pieces of news, and practice notes to check in on to start off the day. Today’s items include an intriguing announcement from Declan Doyle, his fellow coordinator singing the praises of some of the younger players on his side of the ball, and a brief look ahead at a few days of joint practices at The Castle. Let’s get into it:
Doyle Confirms He’ll Call Plays from the Booth
In Tuesday’s media availability, Declan Doyle opened up on a procedural bit of news that’s of interest to how he’ll run the offense from a logistical standpoint. That is, after announcing that he’d be mixing things up by calling plays from the booth and on the sideline at different points, the Ravens first year offensive coordinator announced he’ll be staying in the skybox exclusively this season:
(video via Jamison Hensley on Twitter)
Citing a better connection with his staff and quarterback than being on the sideline affords, Doyle also stated that the coaching staff was running out of time to continue to experiment with how they were going to be running their gameday operations. On the latter point, he indicated that another game of reps from the booth vs. Washington this weekend would provide the extra reps he’d need to get fully comfortable from the bird’s eye view.
We’ll never know what tangible effect this decision has on an offense outside of the obvious ones like more open communication between the coordinator and the entire offensive unit, but it does provide a fascinating window into how said play callers prefer to approach their duties. For some, the chaos of the sideline can be a good thing due to how in the mix you are, and the direct access you have to all of your players; for others, the controlled environment of the booth allows for better focus on calling plays, due to the better view of your team as well as defensive substitutions.
We do know this is nothing Lamar Jackson will be unfamiliar with, as Todd Monken most recently called plays for him from up above. If Jackson can recreate the magic he made in 2023 and 2024 with Doyle now at the helm though, he won’t care if his new coordinator is calling plays from the moon - just that he gets them in on time.
