Ravens Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr didn't know his failed celebratory Christmas leap in Houston had become a viral moment until he talked to his mom.
"She was like, 'Boy, you're crazy. Look what's going on!'" Orr said with a laugh. "I was just so amped up. I fell pretty hard though. I'm not going to lie."
It was a great moment in a great win. And it was a far cry from the text messages and calls from his family that Orr was fielding just weeks ago.
The Ravens' defensive turnaround this season has been impressive, as they went from a unit ranked at the bottom of the league in pass defense by a wide margin to the league's best defense since Week 11.
As the man in charge, Orr took the vast majority of the heat from outside the Under Armour Performance Center. Now the first-year coordinator has come out the other side.
"Personally, it was tough just because of the family," Orr said. "My family, they see stuff and everything, so I'm not going sit here and act like I'm naive, or I don't hear that stuff. My family are the ones really affected by it, but I tell them all the time, it's nothing new. Adversity's always going to hit. If I'm going to preach it, I got to live it."
There was a fiery team meeting after the Ravens' 35-34 Week 10 win against the Bengals, in which Baltimore surrendered 264 receiving yards and three touchdowns to Ja'Marr Chase.
Orr and the Ravens' coaching staff made tough personnel changes at safety and inside linebacker to help solidify the middle of the defense. Those changes have paid off, and Orr said simplifying the verbiage and checks has also helped.
Inside linebacker and defensive leader Roquan Smith said, through it all, Orr was the same coach. He didn't crack.
"He kept his composure," Smith said. "He was the same guy day in and day out, and he didn't change at all. I respect that individual, that despite going through adversity, he still had a smile, still had the same energy every single day."
Now the Ravens are enjoying the rewards but not resting on them. Last week's defensive shutout emphasized just how far Baltimore's defense has come, but they have to keep it rolling against the Browns and into the playoffs for it to ultimately pay off.
"You always appreciate when the work starts to show," Orr said. "I think for us and me personally, and for us here in this organization, it just makes you even hungrier."
Derrick Henry Is Thriving Out of Pistol Formation
Throughout his time in Tennessee, Derrick Henry operated mostly out of single-back formations with the quarterback under center.
That was so much part of his DNA, that even Ravens Running Backs Coach Willie Taggart at-first wondered if Henry's style would work in Baltimore. He quickly came to the realization that it would.
While Lamar Jackson and the Ravens offense has operated significantly more under center this year (29.6%) than last (15.2%), Baltimore is finding success with Henry in shotgun and pistol formations, especially since the bye.
Nearly 11% of Henry's runs this season have been out of the pistol formation. He has averaged a whopping 8.5 yards per carry on those runs, including nine carries for 104 yards and a touchdown against the Texans.
Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken said the Ravens' heavier use running out of shotgun/pistol since the bye is because it was part of their self-scouting tweaks, Charlie Kolar's arm injury, and the opponents they have faced.
"Obviously, having Derrick and getting him running downhill has been good for us," Monken said. "And there are certain things that we've evolved to, and there are other things that I think are better for Derrick and us when we're under center. But I just think he does a great job with it, [and] Derrick has really blended in well with what we've asked him to do."
Roquan Smith Expects the Browns' Best … And They'll Get the Same From the Ravens
With a 3-13 record, the Browns have two things to play for Saturday at M&T Bank Stadium: pride and spoiling the Ravens' bid to win the AFC North.
One of Baltimore's five losses this season came in Cleveland, where the Browns pulled off a 29-24 upset. Regardless of the stakes, the Ravens know it's always a "knockdown, drag-out" battle with the Browns, as Head Coach John Harbaugh said this week.
Smith said he's expecting the Browns' best this weekend, despite the fact that they are heavy underdogs.
"Personally, I don't really look into what people say as far as, 'Oh, we should win this,' or 'We should win that.' If it was based on that, the game wouldn't be played," Smith said.
"The game is played for a reason. Those guys are in the NFL. Those guys have a family to feed, kids at home [and] wives at home, so they're going to put it all on the line and play for an opportunity for them to have a job next season. That's why I know how I'd be if I was in that type of position, and I know guys on that side of the ball that will be the same exact way."
Orr was asked whether he could keep the defensive game plan/play-calling blander against the Browns with the playoffs looming.
"This game right here is for the AFC North, and that's one of our goals," Orr said. "The first goal is to go 1-0 that week. Make the playoffs; we did that. The next one is to win the AFC North, so we're pulling out all the stops that we need to do to go get this win on Saturday."
Ravens Are Week-to-Week at Punt Returner
The Ravens have had three different punt returners in the past four games: Tylan Wallace, Desmond King, and now Steven Sims.
After being claimed off waivers by the Ravens last week, Sims returned punts against the Texans (his former team) despite not having any practice with Baltimore. He was still introducing himself to teammates on the sideline.
Needless to say, it's week-to-week at punt returner for the Ravens after Wallace and King let the ball hit the ground multiple times in their most recent outings.
"Obviously, once we lost [Deonte] Harty, it became, 'OK, we can throw Tylan back there.' We know what we have, and it just became who's available to us," Special Teams Coordinator Chris Horton said.
"If we can continue to add value at that position – which I think we've done over the past couple of weeks – we just roll with those guys. For us, it doesn't really matter who's back there. We know if we take care of our business, we're going to get the job done."
