How the Ravens transformed a struggling defense into an elite unit on the fly

After the Ravens’ narrow victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10, a game in which Baltimore gave up more than 30 points for the third time in six weeks, defensive coordinator Zach Orr noticed a renewed focus and intensity from his unit. 

It carried into the following week, a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. But Orr saw maximum effort and togetherness in that game. No one pointed a finger. 

Orr felt it was the best the defense had played — and in the style he wants it to play, too. 

"I think that’s when it really started to turn," he explained Wednesday, "and we realized that we could build on that and continue to keep it going if we stayed locked in with the preparation." 

As the Ravens prepare to host the Steelers on Saturday night in the wild-card round, it’s clear that the defense took the message to heart. 

After struggling at the start of the season, particularly against the pass, Baltimore's defense has morphed into one of the league’s best. The unit’s ascent makes the Ravens one of the most complete teams in the postseason field, with MVP-candidate Lamar Jackson and superstar running back Derrick Henry leading the charge on offense. 

The Ravens ended the regular season ranked 10th in total defense (324.2 yards allowed per game) and sixth in EPA per play allowed, according to Next Gen Stats.

In the first 10 weeks of the season, they allowed 25.3 points per game, 367.9 yards per game and 294.9 passing yards per game. Baltimore improved to giving up just 15.4 points per game, 261.7 yards per game and 171.5 passing yards per game over the last seven weeks of the regular season. 

The Ravens finished 2024 leading the league in rushing defense (80.1 rushing yards allowed per game) and ranked second in rushing EPA