As far as their defense is concerned, the Ravens had a good one in 2013. They ranked 12th overall, and considering the entire unit could’ve played better, it’s encouraging to know their floor is high heading into this season.
Baltimore’s defensive line lost a key player in Arthur Jones via free agency (Colts), but was re-vamped through the draft (Timmy Jernigan, Brent Urban). Assuming Haloti Ngata and Kapron Lewis-Moore are healthy, Brandon Williams and DeAngelo Tyson keep improving and Chris Canty continues to break up passes, the defensive line figures to be as strong and as deep as any unit on the team.
Losing Corey Graham and potentially starting a rookie at free safety (Terrence Brooks) are mild concerns in the Ravens’ secondary. Hopefully Asa Jackson never gets suspended again and consistently shows the league what kind of talent his coaches see in him. You have to be impressed by the length of Jimmy Smith and the grittiness of Chykie Brown. Â Lardarius Webb could be a top-five cornerback in this league.
The linebackers are no different from the rest of the defense. There’s a good mix of talent, leadership and room to improve. But at one position in particular, the Ravens have to choose between two players that could start on any NFL defense.
Courtney Upshaw and Elvis Dumervil are both listed on Baltimore’s depth chart as a “Sam” linebacker. They’ll line up to the strong side of the formation, usually head-up on the tight end. The Sam has to be able to play the run exceptionally well (set the edge, keep contain, play with proper leverage). He also have to be able to drop into coverage from time to time.
Who do the Ravens like at that spot? According to their most recent depth chart, even they aren’t sure. Under “Sam,” it reads “Courtney Upshaw -OR- Elvis Dumervil.”
If I was John Harbaugh, Dean Pees (defensive coordinator) and Ted Monachino (linebackers coach), I’d go with Upshaw.
Besides the fact that he started 13 games last year, I think he’s a better all-around player than Dumervil. Upshaw isn’t the pass-rusher that Dumervil is, but not many are. Dumervil is one of only two active players 30 years or younger with at least 70 career sacks (Mario Williams). In fact, Upshaw has only recorded three sacks in 32 games. But that’s not his strong suit.
After the 2012 draft, Upshaw was described by Eric DeCosta as a “junk yard dog.”
That’s definitely a good thing. That means he plays with persistent tenacity and innate pursuit. The third-year pro is also gifted at the “stack and shed” technique, which is where a defender gets his hands on a blocker, sheds that blocker and occupies the gap into which he feels the play is going.
Upshaw also holds a slight edge over Dumervil in pass coverage.
In Super Bowl XLVII, Upshaw lined up as a slot defender on seven out of San Francisco’s 28 passing plays, covering Michael Crabtree (three times), Delanie Walker (twice), Bruce Miller (once) and Randy Moss (once).
He allowed zero receptions.
Of course Upshaw is far from a shut-down corner and will be substituted for more often than not in nickel situations. But for a 270-plus-pound rookie to display that type of coverage in the Super Bowl is quite impressive.
Dumervil has 73 sacks and 18 forced fumbles in 78 career starts. He’s going to play a lot for the Ravens and make plenty of big plays for them for years to come.
However, considering that the Ravens play in such a closely-contested division, I think Upshaw will be Baltimore’s starting strong side linebacker in Week 1 of the 2014 season.
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