His decision to part ways with offensive coordinator Cam Cameron is surprising at several levels, and Ravens coach John Harbaugh said the personal part was tough for him.
“There is a very human side to this,” Harbaugh said in a statement issued by the team. “Cam is my friend, he taught me a lot about coaching, and he is an outstanding coach. Personally, this is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do as a coach. Cam has been a significant contributor to all of our successes over the past four, almost five, seasons. Deservedly, he is highly-regarded, and we owe thanks to him for what he did for the Ravens.
“It’s not about fair or unfair, right or wrong. My responsibility is to the whole team and what’s best for them right now. We need a change. Our plan and our goals are to win games, win our division and get to the playoffs.
“We have a lot of work to do, and we have the coaches and players in place to achieve our goals this season. We are working on that right now. I’m excited about where we are and where we are going.”
Installing Jim Caldwell as Cameron’s replacement seems like a simple case of the guy in the next chair moving up one. But Caldwell hasn’t called plays at the NFL level.
He is widely regarded as good and decent human being and a valued position coach (when he got to work with some guy named Peyton Manning, which helps make you look smart). But it’s not as if he was a rising star in the business. He wasn’t a superstar coach in college either, leading a pretty forgettable era of Wake Forest football, which is saying something.
This move either points to internal problems, or simple desperation. Neither would be a good sign for a team which looked like a heavyweight not all that long ago.