Ravens bring back Chuck Pagano as senior secondary coach

Brian Wacker, Baltimore Sun on Jan 28, 2025

Published in Football

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BALTIMORE — What’s old is new again for the Ravens. Chuck Pagano is returning to Baltimore.

Nearly two decades after being hired as part of coach John Harbaugh’s first staff and more than a dozen years after serving as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator for one season, the longtime assistant is coming out of retirement and rejoining Baltimore as a senior secondary coach.

In a statement announcing the move Tuesday night, Harbaugh said the 64-year-old Pagano “will continue to develop and grow our young and talented secondary.”

“Chuck brings a wealth of knowledge, experience and coaching talent to our team,” Harbaugh said. “He has deep ties to the program and is excited to get to work.”

Chris Hewitt is currently Baltimore’s pass game coordinator and an assistant head coach, while Doug Mallory, who joined the Ravens in 2024, is the secondary coach under second-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr. What this hire means for Hewitt and Mallory going forward is unclear.

Pagano, meanwhile, has been a contributor on “The Pat McAfee Show” since 2022.

His most recent coaching job was as defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears, where he spent two seasons on coach Matt Nagy’s staff in 2019 and 2020 before retiring. Before that, he was the coach of the Indianapolis Colts from 2012 to 2017, though his debut season was interrupted as he underwent treatment for leukemia.

In Pagano’s first season in Chicago, the Bears’ defense led the NFC in points allowed per game (18.6) and ranked second in the conference in yards allowed per game (324.1). In Indianapolis, he had a 53-43 record in the regular season, a 3-3 mark in the postseason and led the Colts to two division titles and the 2014 AFC championship game.

Pagano, who spent one season as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator in 2011, is the second former assistant to rejoin Harbaugh’s staff in recent months after 75-year-old former defensive coordinator Dean Pees was hired as a senior advisor five games into the 2024 season.

The Ravens’ defense struggled early in the year, particularly against the pass.

In Baltimore’s first five games this past season, the defense allowed an average of 447.6 yards and 25.2 points per game. And through the first 10 games, the Ravens allowed the most passing yards per game in the NFL while ranking 27th in total yards and 26th in scoring.

Over the final eight games of the regular season and with Pees more heavily involved, however, Baltimore was first in the league in each category.

Other changes helped, too.

Safety Ar’Darius Washington took over for struggling veteran Marcus Williams, while fellow safety Kyle Hamilton was more often deployed on the deep end of the field. Cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Nate Wiggins were also significant contributors, while struggling second-year inside linebacker Trenton Simpson was benched in favor of the more experienced combination of Malik Harrison on running downs and Chris Board on passing plays.

The Ravens finished the regular season ranked eighth in both points allowed per game (21.2) and yards allowed per game (319.2). With the bulk of their players returning next season, they should again have one of the league’s top defenses.