The Baltimore Ravens paid the price for excellence and turned to their familiar patterns in promoting Zachary Orr. A former Ravens linebacker, he is now their defensive coordinator after the Ravens lost Mike Macdonald, now head coach of the Seattle Seahawks. They have successfully leaned upon internal hires for as long as John Harbaugh has been there. Orr, though, is the first in that lineage who actually ran the defense, and he knows what he wants.
“I want it to be violent – very violent, physical”, he told reporters during a press conference, via the team’s website. “That’s just the standard here. Everything we’re going to do is going to be with physicality and violence”.
The Ravens have been known as a hard-hitting and aggressive defense for about as long as they’ve been around. Rarely do they rank outside of the top five or 10 in the major statistical categories. Despite what people say about the Cleveland Browns, the Ravens led the league in points allowed.
Of course it can’t be all about violence. The first thing Orr talked about is wanting his Ravens defense to play 11 as one. Then he focused on executing, both generally and situationally. Baltimore ranked second in the red zone and seventh on third down in 2023 with the most takeaways. He knows he’s inheriting a strong foundation. But he also knows the work starts over every season.
“Last year was a great year, and the thing we did last year was go through the process”, he said. “We’re going to get in the lab this offseason. We’re going to look at ourselves, look at things we did well, look at how can make it even better”.
That starts with figuring out how to make up for the losses. In addition to Macdonald, the Ravens also lost defensive backs coach Dennard Wilson and defensive line coach Anthony Weaver. They also need a new linebackers coach to replace Orr.
And they have two key starters on that defense hitting free agency, including Justin Madubuike. The defensive lineman had a breakout season just in time to hit free agency, the time when “business is business”.
There’s also inside linebacker Patrick Queen, who had his best season, including 133 tackles. General manager Eric DeCosta has already implied that he expects Queen to hit the open market. Not that they won’t try to re-sign him. But it’s just another item on the menu.
The Ravens’ 2023 defense, great as it was, no longer exists. It’s in the past now as are the roster and coaching staff that held it together. Most of them will return next season, but it will be a different mix, a different adventure.
Historically, they’ve done better than most—perhaps anybody—in keeping things moving on defense from one year to the next. No matter how many defensive coordinators they lose, they’ve managed to find another. And then he gets a head coaching job, and the cycle starts over.
