Jeremy Maclin has never played for anyone that wasn’t a present or former Eagles coach. Photo by contrastphotography.com

OWNINGS MILLS, MD: Jeremy Maclin has now been with three teams as he enters his ninth season in the NFL.

On all three teams he was/is coached by a Philadelphia Eagles head coach or offensive coordinator.
He was drafted by then Philadelphia head coach Andy Reid in 2009 with the 19th overall pick out of Missouri.

At the time Marty Mornhinweg was the offensive coordinator and was in charge of developing Maclin.

By most accounts he accomplished that, as Maclin was a productive receiver for the Birds when he was on the field.

Reid left the Eagles after the 2012 season for Kansas City, and is still the Chiefs head coach. Mornhinweg left with Reid but landed with the New York Jets as their offensive coordinator.

After one year with the Jets, Mornhinweg was hired by Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh and is currently the Ravens offensive coordinator.

Maclin was allowed to walk by Eagles then head coach Chip Kelly. Maclin signed a reported five year, $55 million contract with the Chiefs on March 10, 2015, He received a $12 million signing bonus and both his 2015 and 2016 base salaries were fully guaranteed.

Yup, and current Eagles head coach Doug Pederson was the Chiefs offensive coordinator at the time … confused? It gets better.

Maclin was a salary cap casualty after the 2016 season after playing in just 12 games due to injury.

On June 2, 2017, Maclin was released by the Chiefs. On June 13, 2017, the Baltimore Ravens signed Maclin to a two-year $11 million contract, which includes $6 million the first year.

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh – who was an assistant coach with the Eagles from 1998-2007 – said all the Eagles connections made him want Maclin to be Raven… and an Eagle never more?

“Probably, the big picture answer to what Jeremy Maclin brings us is a quality, experienced receiver,” Harbaugh said after the Raven final OTA practice for this spring on Thursday. “He really knows how to play the game. Not only that, he knows how to play the game in this offense because he was with Marty (Mornhinweg) for so long. And the Andy Reid offense as well in terms of the passing game. He fit right in. He ran his routes exceptionally well, and he was very productive in our passing practice today.

“He’s a very good player who I think, selfishly, will be a chain-mover for us,” the coach continued. “Which is important for us.”

Maclin talked about why he decided to go with the Ravens

“I just felt that Baltimore made the most sense, from a football standpoint, a comfort standpoint and a personal standpoint,” the 29-year-old said after OTAs Wednesday. “It is an organization that I’ve always had respect for, from afar. I told coach [John] Harbaugh this: All the stories I heard about him when I got to Philly after he left, it was nothing but positive vibes. So, when I get a chance to come here and meet all the guys and meet the coaches, it just felt right.”

Maclin admitted it hurt to get cut by the head coach who drafted him.

“It hurt a little bit,” Maclin said. “How it went down and it being so unexpected. At the same time, it’s a business, and you understand how things work. There was only one choice but to pull it together and get things back on track.”

Ravens head coach John John Harbaugh says Jeremy Maclin gives him a veteran receiver who has played in this style offense his entire career. Photo by Al Thompson

Maclin said he would use his getting cut as incentive to have a big season after starting only 12 games in 2016 and posting career lows of 44 receptions, 536 yards, and just two touchdowns.

“Big time, and not to prove them [the Chiefs] wrong,” Maclin said. “But you never want to be in a situation like that again. Don’t leave any room for doubt, any error. Just go out there and play football. There were some things last year that were out of my control, and that’s kind of how things go. They kind of took them and ran with them. It is what it is.”
Maclin said his wife. Who is from the Baltimore area, had a lot of input over the weekend when he was making his decision.

“I had a chance to take my mind off of it for a little bit,” said Maclin, who has scored 46 touchdowns during his career. “I had a friend’s wedding that I was in, and I had family in town, and we were able to just hang out. Sunday was when all of the in-depth conversations happened. It was something about Baltimore from the start that caught me and kept it in the forefront of my mind. Everything that my wife said was always about Baltimore. I think that was probably a good sign as well. Happy wife, happy life!”

Maclin was asked if he now has a chip on his shoulder: “The chip has always been there; it’s never left.” *

Some stats from Wikipedia.