With the Atlanta Falcons bringing in a new regime, Dwayne Ledford was one of the coaches caught in the crossfire. Since Kevin Stefanski wanted (and hired) Bill Callahan to be his new offensive line coach, it made Ledford expendable, so he was promptly hired as the Baltimore Ravens' OL coach.
Ledford's calling card in the NFL has been turning late-round picks or undrafted free agents to quality starters--especially at the center position. He turned fourth-rounder Drew Dalman into one of the best centers in the NFL, and once he left in free agency, he was able to do the same with Ryan Neuzil.
I guess he can put this special skill on his resume for his next job hunt, but the good news is that this skill has seemingly followed him from Atlanta to Baltimore, as he helped a former Falcons draft pick work his way into the starting lineup as the Ravens' new replacement for Tyler Linderbaum at center.
Dwayne Ledford and Jovaughn Gwyn are both thriving with the Ravens
With Danny Pinter out for the season, the Ravens embarked on a position battle between Ethan Pocic and Falcons 2023 seventh-round pick Jovaughn Gwyn but Jesse Minter announced that Gwyn will be the Week 1 starter--a development that almost certainly had something to do with Ledford's impact.
The Dwayne Ledford connection with Gwyn was clear. Ledford was in the war room when Atlanta drafted him, and clearly saw enough in him to warrant the Dirty Birds taking a chance on him. But unfortunately, he was buried on the depth chart behind both Dalman and Neuzil and hardly played.
Across three NFL seasons, the 27-year-old has no starts and just 11 offensive snaps to his name--all of which came in 2025. But even still, Ledford liked him enough to allow him to follow him to Baltimore to play a depth role--though he's stepped up with them desperate for contributors at the center spot.
Even with Pocic coming off a torn Achilles, his track record (97 career starts) should've made him the obvious candidate to start. But Ledford and the Ravens went another direction because his familiarity with Gwyn made him feel confident he can develop him into a starter like he did with Dalman and Neuzil.
Winning the job is one thing, but keeping it is an entirely different battle. The South Carolina product is being thrust right into the fire on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, and if he struggles, the Ledford connection won't stop him from considering other outcomes (like Pocic) down the line.
While the Falcons can't really regret letting Dwayne Ledford go because of the legend that is Bill Callahan, it definitely stings to see him and Jovaugh Gwyn thriving with the Ravens.
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