Today has been a busy day for the Baltimore Ravens. Earlier, the Ravens announced that the team was holding onto Greg Roman for the 2018 season. Now, the Ravens announced that the organization is adding a new quarterbacks coach. The role was previously filled by Marty Mornhinweg, who served as both the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator this past season. Baltimore’s newest addition is James Urban, who previously served as Cincinnati’s wide receivers coach. Urban spent the previous seven seasons with the Bengals, finding success along the way. Urban oversaw the development of star wide receivers A.J. Green and Mohammad Sanu during his tenure in Cincinnati. The decision to hire Urban makes sense, especially considering his past positions and ties to coaches in Baltimore.
James Urban’s Experience and Ties to the Ravens
Before joining the Bengals, James Urban spent seven seasons in Philadelphia with the Eagles. While with the Eagles, Urban started as an assistant to the head coach and worked his way up to being the quarterbacks coach from 2009 to 2010. Urban worked with two coaches currently in Baltimore while on the Eagles’ staff. Urban was on the Eagles coaching staff with both John Harbaugh and Marty Mornhinweg. John Harbaugh was Philadelphia’s longtime special teams coordinator and later the defensive backs coach. Marty Mornhinweg joined the Eagles in 2003, and later became the offensive coordinator in 2006. Urban worked directly under Mornhinweg when he was the quarterbacks coach in Philadelphia.
In his two years as the Eagles’ quarterbacks coach, Urban saw his players win recognition in the NFL. Donovan McNabb was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2009, and in 2010, Michael Vick was named Comeback Player of the Year in the NFL. His work with veteran quarterbacks is a valuable commodity for the Ravens. Franchise quarterback Joe Flacco is entering his 11th season in the National Football League. A solid quarterbacks coach will help to keep his level of play up, and his career continued.
