Zach Orr, inside LBs coach for the Ravens, is promoted to defensive coordinator
The year when previous players become well-known with their respective clubs is 2024.
Dan Morgan. Mayo Jerod. And here we have Zach Orr.
Orr, a former linebacker with the Baltimore Ravens, was promoted to defensive coordinator on Thursday.
As stated in a team statement, “Zach is a homegrown Raven in every way,” according to Ravens coach John Harbaugh. “His energy, intelligence, work ethic and strong communication skills have been on display since the day he joined our organization as a player in 2014.”
After defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald accepted the head coaching position in Seattle this week, Orr moves up to become the inside linebackers coach. In addition to his three years as an NFL player with the Ravens, he adds eight years of coaching experience to the table.
Orr, an undrafted free agent who was only able to retire early from the NFL in 2021 due to a neck/spine condition, started his coaching career only after being named to the second team of the NFL in 2016 and cutting his teeth as a defensive analyst in Baltimore from 2017 through 2020. Orr later returned to Baltimore in 2022 as an inside linebackers coach, and he will now be in charge of the entire Ravens defense at a critical juncture where continuity is vital for a team that was only beginning to reach its peak late in the 2023 season.
“From making our team as an undrafted rookie, to becoming an All-Pro linebacker, then later transitioning to an assistant coach who helped mentor multiple Pro Bowl defenders, Zach has excelled at every level of his football journey,” Harbaugh stated. “He is the only one who truly knows our players and our standards. As our future defensive coordinator, I have no doubt that he is up to the responsibility of continuing to develop our players and scheme.”
Orr will start his stay with an edge because top players in Baltimore’s defense, such as Kyle Hamilton and Roquan Smith, fill important roles. In 2024, he hopes to continue exactly where Macdonald left off.
