Declan Doyle didn’t begin his tenure with the Baltimore Ravens by diagramming plays. He began it with a conversation. Before accepting the offensive coordinator job, the 29-year-old spent more than an hour on a video call with Lamar Jackson, wanting to make sure the partnership made sense on both sides.
“I really wanted to see if we were compatible,” Doyle said. “And if that was a fit.”
Jackson, a two-time MVP still only 29 himself, is now entering another reset year after Baltimore missed the playoffs and underwent a coaching change. Doyle arrives with the task of elevating an offense that saw Jackson throw 21 touchdown passes last season — his fewest in a year with at least 13 starts — and rush for a career-low 349 yards. The mandate isn’t to reinvent Jackson. It’s to refine the operation around him. But has Doyle already started to take a shot at his QB?
The Claim: Declan Doyle criticized Lamar Jackson’s post-snap decision-making last season while also encouraging him to attend OTAs, something he skipped a year ago, as Baltimore looks to have him restructure his contract to create salary cap space.
Source of the Rumor:
The rumor stemmed from a post by Skip Bayless, who tweeted:
“The new Ravens OC, a 29-year-old who has never called an NFL play, just criticized Lamar Jackson’s after-snap decision-making last season … while urging him to be at OTAs (he wasn’t last yr) as Balt wants Lamar to restructure to create cap. This will not go well.”
The post suggested Doyle questioned Jackson’s improvisational instincts and subtly called him out for skipping voluntary offseason workouts.
Verdict: Multiple readers and reporters who followed the press conference noted that Doyle did not criticize Lamar Jackson at any point during the introductory session. The OTA comment applied to the entire roster, not Jackson specifically. And that Doyle repeatedly praised Jackson’s talent, mindset, and developmental potential. So the claim is FALSE.
What Doyle actually said: When discussing Lamar Jackson’s game, Doyle framed the conversation around how difficult he is to defend, not around what he lacks.
“The challenge with him for a defense is that they have to defend two plays on every play,” Doyle said. “They have to defend the first play that we call … and then they have to defend the second element, which is him creating on his own.”
That “second element,” the improvisation, was not presented as a flaw. Doyle described it as something Jackson has been doing “since he was a kid,” pointing to a natural instinct that puts constant pressure on defenses. Where Doyle identified potential improvement was within the structure of the called play.
“That first play can be more consistent at times, with his eyes, with his footwork, within the system.”
The emphasis was not on limiting Jackson’s creativity after the snap. It was on sharpening execution before the play breaks down. The implication was that if the designed concept operates more efficiently, Jackson’s off-script ability becomes even more dangerous.
Doyle reinforced that tone throughout the press conference. He described Jackson as someone with a “growth mindset” and a “hunger to learn,” making it clear the coaching staff is eager to build alongside him rather than overhaul his game.
As for offseason participation, Doyle was asked broadly about expectations for attendance during the spring program. His response applied to the roster as a whole.
“We would expect them to be here and certainly it is voluntary. But also, if you want to say that you’re going to win a championship … certainly that’s going to take work.”
The language was plural, “them,” and he explicitly acknowledged the voluntary nature of OTAs. At no point did he single out Jackson, reference last year’s attendance, or connect the comment to contract discussions.
The post Fact Check: Did Declan Doyle Criticize Lamar Jackson in His First Press Conference as Ravens OC? appeared first on The SportsRush.