The Baltimore Ravens are making all the right noises about their new offense, but the most important take comes from All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton. Except he’s not a safety anymore, according to the team’s official depth chart for Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season.
Hamilton sent the league a warning about the offense he’s been dealing with all offseason. A unit redesigned by new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle and more tailored to franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson’s core skills.
Jackson and Doyle form a potent combination, and Hamilton has warned opposing defenders, “You have to be really good with your eyes when you play this offense,” per ESPN’s Jamison Hensley.
The Ravens’ first opponents, the Indianapolis Colts, should heed those words. Yet, the AFC South outfit might be more concerned about exactly where Hamilton lines up at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday, September 13.
Kyle Hamilton Position Change Confirmed
He’s long been a safety in name only as one of the most position-fluid defensive players in all of football. The Ravens have now made Hamilton’s roving brief official after listing him “as a DB instead of a safety” ahead of the trip to Indy, according to Ravens.com Editorial Director Ryan Mink.
This “interesting wrinkle,” as Mink calls it, is only possible because “Jaylinn Hawkins is the starting strong safety. Malaki Starks is the starting free safety.”
Kyle Hamilton is listed as a DB instead of a safety
Jaylinn Hawkins is the starting strong safety. Malaki Starks is the starting free safety.
Having an embarrassment of riches at safety allows the Ravens to lean even more into what Hamilton has been doing for years. Namely, playing everywhere, from on the back end, to the slot, at the linebacker level and even along the defensive line.
Hamilton’s master-of-all-trades skill-set is well known and widely respected by his peers, but there’s something significant about the Ravens being more up front about his hybrid role.
The new designation fits how rookie head coach Jesse Minter is likely to use Hamilton. Former Los Angeles Chargers’ defensive coordinator Minter got creative with another multi-faceted safety, Derwin James, who provides the blueprint for Hamilton’s revised role this year.
Minter will need Hamilton at his best to protect the Ravens’ defense from the same fate the Chargers suffered against the Colts last season.
Fortunately, Minter can expect a more dynamic offense to at least keep pace on the scoreboard.
Ravens’ Offense Tipped for Big Things
Doyle’s expected to elevate Jackson to even greater heights. That’s a bold prediction for a two-time NFL MVP, but a more varied and ambitious playbook is cause for optimism.
Jackson will spend more time under center and rely on extra play-action concepts. Those are the right schematic nuances to keep defenses guessing about what the league’s premier dual-threat signal-caller will do after the snap.
Moving parts and misdirection will create easier reads and allow Jackson to make quicker throws. Doyle used the same dynamic to make second-year QB1 Caleb Williams a star for the Chicago Bears in 2025.
Williams operated a version of the offense Doyle learned from Bears’ head coach Ben Johnson. The same system that helped revive Jared Goff’s career with the Detroit Lions.
It’s easy to believe Jackson will make a greater impact for the Ravens. He’s an elite athlete at football’s most important position and will be putting Doyle’s ideas into practice alongside future Hall of Fame running back Derrick Henry.
This mix of star power and trending X’s and O’s wizardry should make every defense on the Ravens’ schedule heed Hamilton’s warning.
Kyle Hamilton Warns NFL About Ravens’ Offense After Role Switch