Despite a familiar chorus of criticism directed at the offense, most of the Ravens’ moves this offseason have involved the defense. Unfortunately, not all of the changes were entirely voluntary.

Defensive coordinator Rex Ryan has found a new home, this time in New York as a head coach. Under Ryan, the Ravens defense never finished worse than sixth in the league in yards allowed, and they also consistently ranked near the top of the league in rushing yards allowed as well as turnovers.

And it is not just Ryan who’s gone. He took with him star linebacker Bart Scott and safety Jim Leonhard, who filled in for the injured Dawan Landry for nearly the entire 2008 season.

Top it all off with the fact that three-time Pro Bowl selection Chris McAlister, the team’s lockdown cornerback for the last nine seasons, is gone as well.

For the Ravens, the combination of coordinator and player changes will lead to some pretty glaring differences on the field. Given the team’s depth and breadth of defensive talent, however, you can be sure that Baltimore will again be ranked among the league’s best defenses.

The most significant change resulting from this transition will come in response to the loss of Scott.

In Rex Ryan’s signature “organized chaos” schemes, the Ravens typically ran out of a 3-4 set, with occasional dips into a 46. The ability to shift between the two sets was made easy by the Ravens’ depth of talent at defensive end and linebacker; in particular, Pro Bowler Terrell Suggs could line up as an end to anchor a 46, allowing Bart Scott to become the team’s strong side linebacker, or he could stay on his feet and work as an outsider linebacker in a 3-4.

The loss of Scott, however, makes the slide to a 3-4 more difficult for the Ravens, who are now lacking an experienced inside linebacker to play alongside Ray Lewis. Combine this difficulty with the introduction of new defensive coordinator Greg Mattison, and the entire defensive playbook is in for a rewrite.

Mattison is an old-fashioned kind of defensive coach. His primary focus is on the line of scrimmage, where his defensive line sets the tone. Mattison’s primary goal is to stop the run, which should fit in well with a Ravens’ unit that prides itself on shutting opposing running backs down.

Early indications are that Mattison is going to shift the Ravens to a 4-3 base defense, with a solid linebacking corps of Lewis, Suggs, and Jarrett Johnson behind a bulky defensive line. Suggs will still see lots of time on the line of scrimmage, though, especially with the Ravens’ depth at linebacker and relative lack of pass rushers up front.

The Ravens have a lot of youthful talent at ‘backer, including the likes of Antwaan Barnes, Jameel McClain, and Tavares Gooden, not to mention rookie end/linebacker Paul Kruger.

On the defensive line, however, the Ravens have just one established pass-rushing threat in the form of veteran Trevor Pryce. The addition of Kruger will certainly ease some of Pryce’s load, but Suggs will certainly have his chances as well.

Given the depth of the Ravens linebacking corps, a shift from a 3-4 may seem unnecessary. But amidst all the youth, only Gooden has experience playing inside linebacker, and never in a 3-4. The unit would rather have Ray Lewis patrolling the middle of the field with a defensive front eating blockers than risk putting an inexperienced linebacker in his way.

To further help Mattison and this adjustment, the team has used the off months to focus on acquiring speed in the secondary. With the addition of Dominique Foxworth and Chris Carr, the team now has one of the fastest defensive backfields in the league; Fabian Washington and Foxworth may well be the game’s two fastest corners.

The hope is that faster corners can play closer to the line and hold their coverage longer, giving the restructured front seven a little more time to find the quarterback. The formula is simple: Better coverage downfield plus an improved pass rush should lead to more pressure, even after losing Bart.

While the names and faces may be changing slightly, and the schemes in the playbook may be changing a lot, fans should still expect great things from the Ravens defense in 2009. The unit’s goals remain the same: stop the rush, pressure the pass, and force big turnovers.

The good news for Ravens fans is that the core of the team is still intact. For a group that found its way to the AFC Championship, that is not an insignificant statement. Ray Lewis and Ed Reed still lead a strong defensive unit and Joe Flacco and Derrick Mason anchor the offense—hardly a bad place to start on either front.

Unfortunately, the weaknesses threatening a repeat of last year’s playoff run will sound all too familiar. In training camp, the Ravens two weakest positions will line-up face-to-face on every down.

Offensively, the Ravens are still searching for a difference-maker at wide receiver. The team’s struggle to find a franchise quarterback has been well-documented, but after an impressive rookie season, most fans believe they have found their guy in Joe Flacco. Now Flacco just needs someone to throw to.

Veteran Derrick Mason is arguably the best possession receiver in the game today. And tight end Todd Heap is still considered by many to be one of the best tight ends in the game. Yet neither player is capable of shaking a defender and changing a defense’s schemes.

A brief look at last season’s game tapes show just how desperate the Ravens are for a receiver. Many of Flacco’s mistakes were not caused by defensive pressure or a heavy pass rush, but rather by a lack of options downfield. Too often, Flacco had plenty of time, but no one open.

There were plenty of options at receiver this off-season, but the Ravens have yet to make a move for a wide out. They passed on veteran Pro Bowlers Marvin Harrison and Torry Holt and did not take a single receiver on draft day. Rumors continue to swirl about the possibility of a trade for disgruntled Cardinals star Anquan Boldin, but most Ravens fans are not holding their breath.

Newsome, the team’s long-time general manager, says the team does not need an upgrade at receiver. He and the coaching staff are confident that with Joe Flacco, Willis McGahee and a more experienced line, the offense is ready to take off.

They will also point to a number of young receivers drafted in previous years ready to make a difference—from the well-known Demetrius Williams and Mark Clayton, to the lesser known Justin Harper and Marcus Smith.

Newsome may be right. His instincts on players are rarely wrong. But receiver is one position where he has yet to find the answer.

Defense will continue to be the Ravens strong suit, but the unit is far from perfect. The team struggled last year in pass defense, especially on the corners, and Newsome attacked the problem head-on in the off-season.

To be more accurate, Newsome began to deal with the problems in the secondary in 2008. He brought in speedy veterans Fabian Washington and Frank Walker, both who possess impressive physical skills but less than impressive resumes.

This offseason, Newsome continued the overhaul. Aging Pro Bowler Chris McAlister is gone after a season of injuries and apparent run-ins with the coaching staff. In his place, the team acquired Dominique Foxworth and Chris Carr from the Falcons and Titans respectively. Both moves continue Newsome’s shift  towards speed in the secondary.

It is still unclear whether these moves will solve the Ravens issues at corner. Newsome’s hope is obviously that quicker corners will allow the Ravens to have better success against pass-oriented teams like the Indianapolis Colts, who have dominated the Ravens in years past. But trading in proven talent for underperforming athletes has drawn serious criticism.

The Ravens are banking on the hope that faster defensive backs will result in better coverage at the start of a play, buying a stellar front-seven more time to get pressure on the quarterback. They won’t really know what they have, though, until they get to training camp in July.

Bonus Question!

The Ravens certainly have many more weaknesses than the two mentioned above. But the one that has to be most intriguing for this club in particular is in the kicking game. The Ravens allowed Matt Stover, the only holdover from the team’s days in Cleveland, to enter free agency.

So far, Stover has not signed and the Ravens have yet to fill the void. Steve Hauschka, who handled kick-offs for most of last season, and Graham Gano, and undrafted rookie out of Florida State, will compete for the job. But to put it simply, both are unknown variables.

While Stover struggled with long kicks and kick-offs in previous years, his accuracy on kicks under 45 yards was nearly unmatched. Around Baltimore you will find as many Stover jerseys as you will Ray Lewis’ and Joe Flacco’s.

You can be sure that the starting kicker will be a hot-topic all season long and that whoever gets the job, an early season miss will bring on the choir of doubters around the city.

So who stays and who goes in the days before (and after) draft day?

The Ravens have a number of players up for free agency (a solid mix of restricted and unrestricted contracts, at that). Most notable among the names you’ll find unsigned and unrestricted are DE/LB Terrell Suggs and back-up RB Musa Smith. In addition, WR Devard Darling, KR BJ Sams and back-up DB Gerome Sapp are also unrestricted in the coming off-season.

Expect the Ravens to make a solid play for Suggs, who is a key piece of the team’s defensive unit. Outside of Suggs, though, the rest may be out of their purple. Some fresh faces on both sides of the ball might be just what new coach John Harbaugh is looking for, but then again, a core of trusted and respected second-stringers shouldn’t be underestimated.

In addition, if the Ravens even want to have a shot at addressing their weaknesses through the draft and outside free agents, there are going to have to be some major cap casualties. Heavy contracts from Steve McNair, Kyle Boller, Samari Rolle, Mike Flynn and Todd Heap will all need to be dealt with. (I mention only these names at first because I think it’s fair to say that cutting/trading other heavy contracts belonging to Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, etc, will not even be considered an option). Heap might be the biggest surprise to some fans, but his recent injury-plagued years have to have some in front office wondering how long the team can hold onto to a hobbled, if dangerous, tight end.

And, of course, the biggest – literally, the biggest – question still unanswered is veteran OL Jon Ogden and his retirement. If JO decides to call it quits, the cap picture for the Ravens will shift dramatically. But if he decides to stay in uniform for one more season, these money issues will become very real very quickly. From a talent standpoint, with a young core of linemen, Ogden’s experience and leadership could be invaluable.

So what do we want to see happen? Is Ogden’s play worth his price at this point, or would we rather watch him bow out and give the team some more option? Which UFA’s do we want back the most? And which heavy contracts need to be cut to make room for fresh meat?