With everybody running for the door in Baltimore, is Ozzie Newsome next?
Don't bank on it.
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The Ravens general manager is being talked about as a possible candidate for Alabama's vacant athletic director position, which makes some sense. After all, Newsome is a legend across the state, where he starred for the Crimson Tide after growing up in Muscle Shoals. Newsome also is close with Alabama coach Nick Saban, but Newsome insists he's going nowhere.
"I already have a great job," he told Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun on Wednesday.
Newsome also swatted down retirement questions after Baltimore's victory in Super Bowl XLVII.
"That's not even close," Newsome said. "Really, I enjoy the guys I work with and I think we have a great staff. I really, really enjoy the players and my relationships with them, and that helps me in coming to work every day. Of course, winning helps, too."
The Ravens are salary-cap strapped and stuck watching a fleet of their own veterans sign lucrative free-agent deals elsewhere. From one angle, it might be a fitting time to call it a career in Baltimore, but that ignores who Newsome is. The Alabama role is intriguing, but don't expect Ozzie to walk away from the Ravens any time soon. He isn't finished yet.
UPDATE: Former Tennessee football coach Bill Battle was named Alabama's athletic director on Friday.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.
