Dez Bryant loves the Ravens' choice for offensive coordinator

Bryant, who spent the final year of his nine-season career playing six regular season games and two playoff contests with the Ravens in 2020, tweeted that he believes the Monken hire was made to keep quarterback Lamar Jackson from leaving the team. 

Jackson is expected to receive the exclusive franchise tag this offseason, as the two sides continue negotiations for a possible contract extension.

The 34-year-old Bryant also made some potentially bold predictions regarding Jackson returning to MVP form, star tight end Mark Andrews and the team's 2023 outlook.

The former three-time Pro Bowler and 2014 First Team All-Pro played at Oklahoma State from 2007-09, before being selected by the Dallas Cowboys as the 24th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. 

After Monken's first NFL gig as the Jacksonville Jaguars wide receivers coach from 2007-10, he served as Oklahoma State's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for two seasons, apparently making a fan of Bryant. The 57-year-old was then the head coach at Southern Mississippi from 2013-15 and was named the CUSA Coach of the Year in his final season with the Golden Eagles.

Monken was again an offensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2016 to 2018, before holding the same role with the Cleveland Browns in 2019. He was the offensive coordinator at the University of Georgia the last three seasons, helping the Bulldogs win back-to-back national championships during the 2021 and 2022 campaigns.