New Ravens Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr was a coveted coach this hiring cycle.
Orr, who spent the past two seasons coaching the Ravens' inside linebackers, confirmed to The Lounge podcast that Mike Macdonald tried to bring him along to Seattle and that he interviewed with the Green Bay Packers.
"I tell people all the time; I bleed purple and black," Orr said. "This organization, it means something a little different to me."
It says something that Macdonald, who became the Seahawks' head coach last week, chose Orr as somebody he wanted to come with him.
"He was lobbying, but he knows it was going to be dang near impossible for me to leave this place," Orr said. "He understands this is a special place and this means a lot to me right here. I had an opportunity to stay. I couldn't leave, I wasn't leaving for nowhere."
Orr said it was a "whirlwind" last week with how fast the hiring process moved for him and other Ravens coaches.
Orr got a call on Monday, the day after the Ravens' AFC Championship game loss, with an interview request from the Packers. Orr interviewed with them on Wednesday and reportedly had an offer from the Packers to be their defensive coordinator.
Dennard Wilson, Anthony Weaver, and Chris Hewitt were also interviewing for defensive coordinator jobs, with Wilson landing in Tennessee and Weaver ultimately going to Miami.
Orr's interviews with Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh started on Monday and they went for another round on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Harbaugh called Orr into his office to tell him he was offering him the job. Orr accepted on the spot.
"I'm thankful and grateful, excited that the organization and Coach Harbaugh have trust in me for this position," Orr said. "Now I'm determined to go get the job done and help in any way I can."
The Ravens were the first team that called Orr when he went undrafted in 2014. They gave him his shot as a player, and he blossomed into a full-time defensive starter in his third season.
When Orr's career was forced to end early due to a congenital neck/spine condition, Ravens Owner Steve Bisciotti called Orr to tell him the Ravens wanted to keep him on staff in another capacity. That was the start of his coaching career that has now, seven years later, made him the NFL's second-youngest defensive coordinator at 31 years old.
"This organization has always picked me up in some of my lowest moments as a professional athlete," Orr said.
