Two of the team’s top defenders have high hopes for the unit under their next young “defensive mastermind.”
At the onset of the offseason, the Baltimore Ravens lost what many view as arguably the brightest and most innovative defensive mind in the game. Former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald was hired by the Seattle Seahawks to replace gold-jacket-worthy coach with defensive expertise in Pete Carroll.
Instead of promoting one of their more seasoned defensive assistants on head coach John Harbaugh’s star-studded staff, some of which went on to be hired elsewhere to serve in the same role, they opted to turn over the reins of the reigning top overall defense in the league to 32-year-old inside linebackers coach Zach Orr.
While the former All Pro player turned first-time caller’s coaching resume isn’t long or highly decorated, his players think exceptionally highly of him. They expect the defense to continue to ascend instead of taking a step or two back, which many pundits in the national media believe might happen following Macdonald’s departure.
One of the several defenders who enjoyed a career year under Macdonald last year and parlayed his breakout campaign into a near top-of-the-market deal was defensive tackle Justin Madubuike. The 2023 Pro Bowler and Second Team All Pro selection recently gave Orr another ringing endorsement by calling him a “defensive mastermind” and claiming he shares many of the same qualities and traits as a coach that made his predecessor a rising star.
“He knows where to put us in positions to be successful,” Madubuike said Saturday during a press conference. “He knows our weaknesses. He knows our strengths. He knows how he can utilize us to play great on defense. I feel like our defense is going to be even better than last year.”
The praise didn’t stop there and continued when two-time First Team All Pro inside linebacker Roquan Smith stepped to the podium on the day the rest of the team reported to training camp.
“I think are very similar that’s here, and I have a great deal of respect for Zach [and] his mindset,” Smith said. “He’s been out there on the field, and believe it or not, obviously him and Mike [Macdonald] are two totally different people, and they’re unique in their own way, but through the headset, they actually sound the same.
“I’m excited for ‘Z.O.,’ for him to showcase what he’s able to do with the pieces that we have here and showcase it to the world. We’ve all been doubted before, [how] things may not be as good as this, that or the third, but the game gives us the opportunity to prove that.”
Smith also believes the unit is capable of reaching even greater heights with a new yet familiar voice calling the shots despite losing some key players and assistant coaches to other teams.
“Through the headset they actually sound the same.”
Ro on the defense under DC Zach Orr: pic.twitter.com/PUPq2w88x2— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) July 20, 2024
“I think we can be better, honestly. I know we can, not just think,” Smith said Saturday. “I have a great deal of respect for the guys that were here before. Good luck to those guys in the places that they are, but I have the utmost respect for each and every guy that’s in here, and I know the potential that each and every guy has, so it’s all about going out and proving it week-in and week-out, and I think it starts in training camp, day-in and day-out.
“Everybody is excited early on, and I know we have the mindset of guys pushing through adversity when we face that. But I love the pieces that we have here, and we’ll be able to show that to the world soon enough, and maybe we’ll come back to this conversation at the end of the year, and we’ll be like, ‘Wow, can we be better than that?’”
The Ravens’ highly successful line of succession at the defensive coordinator spot is rich and well-documented as is their history of developing up-and-coming assistant coaches on that side of the ball.
Repeating their historic triple crown as a unit last season in which they led the league in sacks, fewest points per game and takeaways is unlikely given the non-cyclical nature of such stats when it comes to defense year over year. However, with the retentions they made and reinforcements at key positions they brought in during the offseason coupled with the continued growth from younger players, fielding a unit every bit as dominant or even better in its own unique way as was the case in 2023 is completely conceivable and shouldn’t be surprising if it comes to pass.