Baltimore Ravens vs. Carolina Panthers: What Winning Culture Looks Like
About Case Study Authors
Ibex Tactics LLC, was founded by Alex Bolowich & Ben Foodman. Before starting the company, Alex and Ben were working with athletes on an individual basis, helping them improve their mental performance using sport psychology-based interventions. While both professionals had incredible success working with some of the world’s most elite athletes, a significant portion of the time they were unable to help some of their clients due to the poor cultures these athletes were immersed in. As a result, Alex and Ben created Ibex Tactics LLC, which dedicated towards providing science-driven solutions to helping teams build resilient cultures.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION: Analysis Of The Baltimore Ravens Culture vs. The Carolina Panthers Culture
PART I. The Carolina Panther’s Culture Problem
PART II. The Baltimore Ravens Exemplify Textbook Culture
PART III. How The Baltimore Ravens Exhibit Elite Group Security Cues
PART IV. What ALL Teams Can Take Away From The Ravens Culture Model
NOTE TO READER: THE ARMCHAIR CASE STUDIES ARE EXCLUSIVELY PROFESSIONAL OPINION ARTICLES THAT IBEX TACTICS PROVIDES READERS WITH. WE DO NOT HAVE ANY AFFILIATION WITH THE FOLLOWING ORGANIZATIONS MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Introduction: Analysis Of The Baltimore Ravens Culture vs. The Carolina Panthers Culture
There are some professionals within the sport performance industry that believe the word culture is either overused or is not as impactful as some would think. Readers will be shocked to read that at Ibex Tactics, we agree with these statements…but not in the way people would expect. Culture is an overused word by most organizations because to them, having good team culture sounds promising. But oftentimes leaders in these organizations do not display behaviors that represent their stated beliefs in the importance of culture. Based on our applied experience, it is also true that culture for most teams has little impact because the majority of organizations don’t ingrain regular practices that meaningfully enforce culture.
The fact of the matter is that WHEN culture is meaningful and regularly enforced, it can have a tremendous impact on a team’s ability to thrive and excel in their field. Take for example the NFL. A perfect representation of where you can see this is when you examine the behaviors and results of two specific teams in the league: the Baltimore Ravens and the Carolina Panthers. Unlike MLB or other sports, all teams in the NFL are subject to the same rules when it comes to salary caps, drafting players and employee contracts. So why is it that when comparing these two teams, we see where an established culture has helped one thrive, and a lack of culture has destroyed another? Let’s dive deeper into this!
Part I. The Carolina Panther’s Culture Problem
In a recent interview by former Carolina Panther’s quarterback Cameron Newton, he expressed the following thoughts on the Panther’s culture: I’m talking about the culture that was there prior to me coming into the locker room — and it was a losers’ mentality. Is it me saying that ‘Oh when I came, I made everything better?’ No. I never said that. What I said was if you’re getting drafted No. 1, you’re going to a bad football team. That’s facts. When he made these statements, there was initial outrage from the Charlotte community…but was he wrong? No, and the stats show that his observation accurately articulated the behaviors that the organization demonstrated before his arrival. First, consider the following statistics: the Carolina Panthers have only had 5 winning seasons, with 8 playoff appearances in what many people consider to be one of the weakest divisions in the NFL with over half of those winning playoff appearances beginning in 2013…2 years after Cam Newton was drafted.
After Cam Newton was drafted, it is true they were able to draft and retain talented athletes to help build the roster (e.g. Luke Kuechly, Ryan Kalil, Josh Norman, Thomas Davis) for a short period of time. But prior to this run in the draft, it never appeared that the Panthers had been successful in retaining players, managing the salary cap, or making smart staff decisions. One can assume that this was because there was never a clear strategy to create organizational alignment through science-driven strategies. The evidence to support this claim can be understood through the following metrics: since their inception the Carolina panthers have had 10 different head coaches with only 3 sustaining .500 winning seasons, and 8 different general managers. These data points along with many other important metrics are representations of an organization that has never developed a culture of alignment. But let’s take a look at an NFL team with an established culture that did translate to winning.
Part II. The Baltimore Ravens Exemplify Textbook Culture
The Baltimore Ravens are an excellent example of an NFL franchise that has existed almost as long as the Carolina Panthers but has an established culture. A slightly younger franchise than the Panthers, the Ravens were established in 1996 and differentiate themselves from the Panthers in every ideal way imaginable. The Ravens have had a total of 3 head coaches (compared to the Panther’s 10), 2 General Managers (compared to the Panther’s 8), have made 16 playoff appearances (compared to the Panther’s 8) have amassed 17 winning seasons (compared to the Panther’s 5), and have won both Super Bowls that they appeared in (compared to the Panther’s 2 Super Bowls they lost). It is a very simple formula: if your organization maintains alignment through a clear vision unique to your team’s culture, your team is probably going to consistently win. This isn’t just “good luck” …and the proof is in the pudding.
Consider the memorable core of players both teams have had over the years. At one point, the Ravens had a club with star power that consisted of former quarterback Joe Flacco, a robust offensive line, and NFL hall of fame defensive players including Ed Reed and Ray Lewis. The Panthers had a core group of players around the same time period which included star players such as Steve Smith, Julius Peppers and Jake Delhomme. However, after both clubs had successful runs, only the Ravens were able to sustain long-term success after their core players left the organization…and they have continued to do so. The Ravens still consistently make playoff appearances, had very little staff turnover, and continue to retain many of their star players & staff. At least up until the 2024 season, the Panthers continued to cycle through coaches, general managers, and have not properly developed their players (e.g. The Panthers at one point had Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold one the same roster…both of whom went on to have successful careers at other clubs after being let go). But besides looking exclusively at the metrics, what are other ways we can tell if culture really is the driving force behind the success of the Ravens?
Part III. How The Baltimore Ravens Exhibit Elite Group Security Cues
In an interview with Marlon N. Humphrey, Steven Bisciotti gave an invaluable glimpse into a specific behavior that he exhibits as the owner of the Ravens: I never ever overrule anybody. I might turn John on to some people (referring to the NFL draft scouting process) but that’s not my job. When I was running Aerotek, I knew that business better than anybody. So, I felt like I should be the leader, I should be the one front and center. When I got this, I knew I would never catch up to the talents of the coach, the president and the GM. It wasn’t really humility, it was intelligence. It was just I don’t want to be front and center because there is always someone in this organization who is smarter than me in every single category. This perspective from Mr. Bisciotti is representative of what we refer to as Group Security cues.
By allowing his team to actually execute key decisions in their respective roles, he provides members with a critical security cue. On the surface, Mr. Bisciotti is saying do your job, but underneath these statements he is providing a sense of belonging by saying ‘I trust you’. Signaling to your team members that you have trust in their ability to execute is a critical component of providing security within the group. It signals to each member that they belong and add value to the team. Furthermore, this statement shows that he has a natural talent for maintaining organizational alignment. He has a filter process where he CLEARLY knows his vision for the organization and is able to bring on people who also SHARE his vision for how to help the team be successful. It’s not enough to SAY your organization values good culture, you have to PRACTICE good culture habits.
Part IV. What ALL Teams Can Take Away From The Ravens Culture Model
Many teams talk about “winning culture” but when you press them on what that means, they usually provide some form of predictable word-vomit or culture slop slogan. Establishing and maintaining a culture means you need to have a hypothesis and an evidence-informed model that acts as a type of “blue-print” that you are going to follow and stick to when you are creating the foundation of your organization’s culture. Remember, culture isn’t just for creating long-term success, it’s also in place to help your organization navigate difficult times. But unless you are someone who has a track-record of success like Steve Bisciotti, you are probably going to need expert advice on HOW to do this. Fortunately, we here at Ibex Tactics are built to help teams at all levels of performance create high quality cultures using science-driven solutions.
At Ibex Tactics, we meet your organization wherever it is in terms of its’ culture foundation. For instance, let’s say you are an organization with no foundation of culture, or are unsure of where to even start. In cases like these, we always recommend clients start with our introductory Tier 3 services. In Tier 3, we provide you with the introductory science that explains what culture actually is, how to build it, and how to maintain it. We also provide you with introductory tools that you can start to use to create, maintain and enforce your desired culture. Wherever you are in your journey, it’s never too late to start investing in your organization’s culture. Use the form below to reach out and see if our services are a good fit for your team!
NOTE TO READER:
Alex and Ben wanted to compile their expertise in the Ibex Tactics Case Studies to help teams in the sports and corporate sector better understand how many of the issues they are dealing with are more often than not related to culture. Most teams recognize that culture is an important component of their success, but do not always have the resources or expertise to analyze the complexity of culture. If you are interested in learning more about the services that Ibex Tactics offers to help with culture development, use the contact form below and sign up with your email to receive updates on new services and case studies!
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