February 2nd, 2018 by WCBC Radio

Ozzie Newsome, a fixture in the Ravens organization since its inception, will step down as general manager after next season, handing the reins of the player personnel decisions over to Eric DeCosta, owner Steve Bisciotti said at Friday’s State of the Ravens address.

“We had talked after the ’13 season and it was about Eric, and Ozzie agreed to re-do his contract for a five-year extension in which he case he would turn over the 53 to Eric. That’s a year away,” Bisciotti said in response to the first question of a 40-minute news conference.”Ozzie will step down as GM and has assured me that he’s not going anywhere and that he will work with me and work with Eric for a smooth transition.”

The 61-year-old general manager and executive vice president built two Super Bowl championship-winning teams in Baltimore, made the Ravens front office one of the gold standards in the league and has had a trailblazing career as a top NFL executive. Though he will no longer be the organization’s top decision maker, he will remain with the team in an unspecified role.