Baltimore Beatdown Staff: Could Ed Reed return to the Ravens as DBs coach?

The Ravens have a coaching vacancy as they look to replace former DB’s coach Leslie Frazier. Frazier was hired by the Buffalo Bills to become their defensive coordinator. When looking for a DB coach, one name quickly pops to mind - Ed Reed. The connections to Baltimore are strong, and its fair to wonder if now is the time for a reunion between Reed and the Ravens. Baltimore Beatdown staff writers Matt Cohen and Michael Sedjro present takes on whether or not this would be beneficial to the Ravens.

Matt Cohen

With Leslie Frazier recently hired as the Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator, the Ravens are now looking for a new DB’s coach. The Ravens will have to sort through the many candidates, but there is one option stands out among the rest.

Ed Reed.

Who better to coach the Ravens secondary than arguably the greatest safety of all time. Reed has had previous coaching experience, with the Bills, but the former ball-hawking safety would be perfect for the Ravens job. The Ravens consistently trotted out of one the best secondaries in the NFL with Reed manning the back end. Reed’s presence and experience could help the Ravens defense regain its former glory.

Reed was a member of the Bills coach staff that helped develop Ronald Darby and Stephon Gillmore, one of the best secondary duo’s in the NFL. Reed could have a profound impact on some of the young Ravens like Tavon Young.

The Ravens safety core, despite playing well this season, is aging. Eric Weddle is 32 and Lardarius Webb is 31. The Ravens are likely to draft a safety to groom as the replacement either this year or next year. Who better to help develop a young safety than Ed Reed? Ravens fans would be frothing at the mouth if the Baltimore landed Malik Hooker or Jamal Adams in this year’s draft and left them to be coached by Reed.

Hiring Reed would be a fantastic move for the Ravens to replace the now departed Frazier.

Michael Sedjro

Ed Reed is a living legend. This is known. His ability to communicate strategy clearly with his teammates was always apparent, and perhaps even sharper than Ray Lewis'. To bring him on as the secondary coach seems like a no-brainer kind of move.

The problem with Ed Reed is that he is Ed Reed. As a player, a lot of the things he was able to do were things that could not be taught. If every player in the secondary took the gambles Reed did, the defense would turn to shambles. Reed cannot teach his understudies to be Reed, but he might be inclined to, as being Reed is all he knows.

The best coaches are often players that spent their careers on the bench. The greatest players often have the propensity to be too demanding as coaches. Mike Singletary is perhaps the best example of such.

He has been reported to have a rather rocky relationship with John Harbaugh, as he was part of the infamous mutiny in 2012. Harbaugh has also gone on record to say him and Reed could go days without talking. It is clear that the link between Reed and the Ravens was forged by Rex Ryan, not John Harbaugh.

As a defensive back coach, Reed does not have too much responsibility. The fate of the entire defense is not dependant on his coaching, so when weighing risk and reward, the hire does not seem like a big gamble. There are potential red flags however, but it would be an inspired hire that would get the fanbase excited.