<
        >

          NFL Nation

          Saintly inspiration: How John Harbaugh can pull Sean Payton turnaround

          Sean Payton, left, has the Saints back in the playoffs after a three-year drought; that's the same length as the current dry spell for John Harbaugh, right, and the Ravens. Chuck Cook/USA TODAY Sports
          • Jamison Hensley, ESPN Staff WriterJan 11, 2018, 12:01 PM
            Close
              Jamison Hensley is a reporter covering the Baltimore Ravens for ESPN. Jamison joined ESPN in 2011, covering the AFC North before focusing exclusively on the Ravens beginning in 2013. Jamison won the National Sports Media Association Maryland Sportswriter of the Year award in 2018, and he authored a book titled: Flying High: Stories of the Baltimore Ravens. He was the Ravens beat writer for the Baltimore Sun from 2000-2011.
            Follow on X

          OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- A Super Bowl-winning coach triumphantly leads his team on a championship run after failing to make the playoffs in the previous three seasons.

          That's what Sean Payton has done with the New Orleans Saints this season. This is what John Harbaugh hopes to do with the Baltimore Ravens next season.

          Payton's turnaround can provide some hope for those who don't believe Harbaugh can pull the Ravens out of their rut of mediocrity. The Saints were 7-9 for three consecutive seasons before winning the NFC South this season and advancing to the divisional round to play at the Minnesota Vikings.

          Baltimore, which has gone 22-26 (.458) over the past three seasons, can follow the same path as New Orleans with these three steps:

          Hit big in the draft: New Orleans landed five impact players in the 2017 draft, including the potential NFL offensive rookie of the year in running back Alvin Kamara and defensive rookie of the year in cornerback Marshon Lattimore. This type of draft will be tough for any team to duplicate, but the crux is the Ravens need to reverse their draft trend. Baltimore has selected only five starters over the past three drafts, which is a big reason why this team has been stuck in the middle of the league. The Ravens have also drafted one Pro Bowl player in the past four years, which has begun to tarnish the gold standard. The pressure is on for the Ravens to find difference-makers with four of the first 102 picks (including a third-round compensatory one), particularly when they have limited salary-cap space in free agency.

          Solve the longtime problem: The Saints' defense has struggled as much as the Ravens' offense. From 2014 to 2016, New Orleans' defensive rankings were: 31, 31 and 27. The Saints' resurgence has been keyed by game-changers like Lattimore (five interceptions and 18 passes defensed) and defensive end Cameron Jordan (13 sacks and 11 passes defensed). New Orleans allowed the 10th-fewest points in the regular season. Baltimore needs to do the same on the other side of the ball. The Ravens have gotten progressively worse on offense in each of the past four seasons, going from No. 12 in 2014 to No. 27 in 2017. But if the Ravens can add some much-needed playmakers on offense, perhaps Baltimore can enjoy the same type of renaissance. For those who don't believe the Ravens can ever fix their offense, many who follow the Saints felt the same way about their defense.

          Fast start: The Ravens and Saints were unable to get to the playoffs for a three-year stretch because they were always digging themselves out of early holes. New Orleans was 10-12 in September and October from 2014 to 2016. Baltimore can relate, with a 9-14 mark in those two months since 2015. It's left the Ravens little margin for error going forward. The difference with the Saints this season was an 8-2 start. This put New Orleans in position for not just a playoff game but a home postseason game. The last time Baltimore reached the postseason was 2014, when the Ravens won five of their first seven.