The Ravens defense has allowed 35.4 points a game in the first five games of the season. This is the highest in the franchise’s history. Despite the offense scoring 28.1 points per match, they have a 1-4 overall record.

Injury hit the defense line very early. Pro Bowler Nnamdi Madubuike was ruled out of the season due to a neck injury, and Broderick Washington suffered an ankle injury requiring surgery. Tavius Robinson, a rising outside linebacker, broke his foot during a loss against the Rams. Roquan Hamilton and Kyle Hamilton, both Pro Bowlers, also spent time on the sidelines, causing a defense that was already struggling to fall further. The result? An embarrassing home loss by the Texans of 34 points.

The Ravens defense seemed to be reactivated after that defeat. Zach Orr has led his defensive unit to allow just 13.5 points per game in the last three games. The team has also won back-toback games for first time since the season began.

What has changed since the last time you visited?

The Ravens, in an attempt to fix the problem they were having, traded Odafe Oweh (5th year pass rusher) to the Los Angeles Chargers. They also swapped picks and Alohi Gillman for the safety. Orr’s defensive identity changed two days after this move. Gilman teamed up with Malaki Starks, a rookie on the backend to try and unleash Hamilton.

Hamilton played only five snaps as a natural safety in the last three games. He has also played 46 snaps from the slot, 35 snaps off the edge, 29 snaps on the box, 6 snaps inside the defensive line and 2 snaps as an outside corner. The versatility of the All-Pro has helped the Ravens defense turn a corner.

The Ravens struggled with red zone defense in the first five matches of the season. The Ravens were beaten by the opposition on 19 out of 25 trips into the red zone. This is a 76% rate. In the three most recent games, opponents reached the endzone on only 3 out of 11 trips. That’s a rate of 27.2%. According to Fox Sports, the Broncos are currently leading the NFL for red zone defense. They allow a touchdown in 40% of drives.

In the last three weeks, the defense led by Zach Orr has shown its potential. The team’s victory over the Dolphins on Thursday was 28-6 and the team forced 3 Dolphins mistakes.

What can be done to improve the defense?

All eyes are on the Tuesday trade deadline. According to Russell Street Report Brian McFarland the Ravens have over $14m of cap space. This gives them financial flexibility to add talent to a developing defense.

Injuries to Madubuike, Washington and others have made the interior defensive line weaker. The pass rush has also been a disappointment. The Ravens only have 11 sacks after eight games despite keeping most of the players that led to 54 sacks in the previous season. Travis Jones, Brent Urban and Taven Bryan have all split time between the defensive tackle positions. CJ Okoye, a rookie, is also in there. But none of them have been able to match Madubuike.

Kyle Van Noy is the most experienced rusher on the team. The departure of Oweh, as well as the injury to Robinson has led to a greater role for Mike Green and David Ojabo. Van Noy Green and Ojabo only have three of the 11 sacks the team has, signaling the need for more production.

Orr and Ravens’ Defense will be hoping to continue building momentum as they fight to make it to the playoffs.