Offseason Outlook 2015: Baltimore Ravens

Offense

This is a talented Ravens offense that is coming off of a very strong year. The loss of Gary Kubiak as offensive coordinator hurts, but getting Marc Trestman is another strong option, and frankly that might not be a downgrade at all. Joe Flacco is coming off of a solid season, but more should be expected out of the former Super Bowl MVP this year because the Ravens have surrounded him with talent. Out wide, Baltimore has Steve Smith who is coming off a good year as the number one option for Flacco. Smith started out really strong and cooled off during the middle of the season, so consistency is the biggest issue here for him. The Ravens drafted Breshad Perriman to replace Torrey Smith, and Baltimore needs his speed as they don't have very many people other than him to stretch the field. I think he'll take over the number two wide receiver spot early on in training camp as he is their most talented option for that spot. Perriman is also good for this offense because his blazing speed mixes so well with Flacco's big arm. Marlon Brown will be in the slot, and he had a solid year last year. Hopefully with regular playing time this year, he can grow and become an even bigger end zone threat for Flacco. At tight end, the Ravens drafted Maxx Williams in the second round, and he should be expected to be the starting TE straight out of the gate. Baltimore lost Owen Daniels to Denver, but Maxx has higher upside and could be in for a big season behind a QB who often looks for his TE's. At running back the Ravens retained Justin Forsett's services, which was smart because they are thin at the position and he had somewhat of a breakout season last year. Lorenzo Taliaferro is penciled in as their number 2 back, and in scarce playing time last year he was solid. The Ravens offense is one that still uses a fullback, and they have a very good one in Kyle Juszczyk (I had to look up how to spell his last name). He is a versatile player and is only entering his second season of getting actual playing time, so he should continue to grow. The bread and butter of this Ravens offense is their O-line. They have the best tandem of guards in the league with Marshal Yanda and Kelechi Osemele. These two are absolute maulers, and are also terrific in pass protection. I would say that Yanda is easily the best guard in the NFL too. At left tackle, they have Eugene Monroe who is coming off a good season protecting Joe's blindside. At right tackle, they have 2014 breakout player Ricky Wagner, who is coming off a terrific year. He took the biggest leap out of any Raven that year, and it might have been the most vital to their team too because without him they had a huge hole at right tackle. At center they also have a solid player in Jeremy Zuttah, so this O-line is absolutely stacked. I would expect another big year out of this offense. They finished top 10 last year, so another finish in the top 10 seems about right. I'm interested to see the effect of changing offensive coordinators has on this offense, as this is their third in three years. Marc Trestman did get a lot of Josh McCown and Jay Cutler, so there is no reason to believe he won't utilize Joe Flacco to his fullest abilities either.

Defense

This defense is so good. Even with the injuries and struggles of their secondary last year, they were still a top 10 D, and in fact almost top 5. Up front, the loss of Haloti Ngata should be noted, but it might not be as big of a loss on the field as many seem to think. Timmy Jernigan will take over as the left defensive end in the 3-4 defense, and he had a good year last year in spot duty last year. He may even outplay Ngata this year, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Beside Jernigan, the Ravens have a really good nose tackle in Brandon Williams. He was a key cog in their defense last year, and definitely did not get enough credit for how well he played. Chris Canty is opposite Jernigan, and he had a solid year last year too. The real threat of this defense is in their linebackers. From left to right, they have flat out talent that all had terrific years last year. Elvis Dumervil and Terrell Suggs are both terrific pass rushers, and Courtney Upshaw provides excellent depth too. In the middle, C.J. Mosley had an incredible rookie season, and if he continues his development he will be among the elite ILB's in no time. Beside him, Daryl Smith had a shockingly good year, and even though he is getting older he should have another great year. The secondary that had so many questions all throughout last year looks a lot more solidified this season. Jimmy Smith and Lardarius Webb are a formidable duo at cornerback, and Smith especially is one to watch for a big breakout year this season if he can stay healthy. In the slot, the Ravens got a big upgrade in Kyle Arrington who will replace Asa Jackson who struggled mightily in 2014. At safety, the Ravens may finally be moving on from Matt Elam if he doesn't improve, which is definitely the smart thing to do. He is coming off of a rough season, and the Ravens can't afford the negative coverage grades he consistently gets. Beside him, Will Hill had a very strong year overall, and should look to build off of that possibly beside Kendrick Lewis if he replaces Elam as a starter. Health is the biggest question with this secondary, because it was the reason why this defense wasn't as good as it could have been last year. If Smith and Webb both keep healthy, then this secondary should bounce back to have a nice season. Overall, this defense has so much talent that it will be hard for it to have a bad year. The Ravens know how to build a team, and the roster they currently have proves just that. Suggs and Dumervil are still the key players in this defense, and as long as they continue putting pressure on opposing offenses, then expect player like Mosley, Williams, Smith and Hill to thrive. I'm going to guess a top 5 finish for this defense. Just based off of getting healthy, and how close they were to a top 5 finish last year, they should be able to achieve that goal.

Baltimore is one of the most consistent franchises in football. John Harbaugh is a terrific coach, and he has a great front office too. They know how to build a roster, coach it up, and in general get the most out of their talent. The offense has a terrific core that it has built around, and even though it isn't as strong in the skill position player department as other elite teams, it uses its dominant O-line to make smart plays and put points on the board. Their defense isn't as flashy as Seattle's, but again it is smart and deep across the board, and the Ravens scheme to minimize their weaknesses and utilize their strengths. A playoff berth is very likely for this good Ravens squad, and a Super Bowl berth is not out of the question either. I predict an AFC championship game exit, but I would not be shocked in the slightest if they went on to win it all next year. They are just that good.