The Baltimore Ravens are going into the season with a better secondary on paper, but that might not exactly translate on the field.
There isn't a lot of doubt behind Baltimore's new additions in the secondary, but seeing how the team responds in action will be important to determine how far the Ravens defense can go in the upcoming season.
Bleacher Report writer Gary Davenport questioned if the Ravens had truly shored up their secondary.
"Last year, the Baltimore Ravens won 12 games and the AFC North. But as good as they were in so many areas a season ago, the pass defense struggled and finished 26th in the NFL in passing yards allowed," Davenport wrote.
"The Ravens went hard at that pass defense in the offseason in both free agency and the draft, whether it was adding veteran cornerbacks Jaire Alexander and Chidobe Awuzie or using their first draft pick on Georgia safety Malaki Starks.
"... You likely won’t see much of the likes of Alexander in the preseason. But simply demonstrating some ability to slow opposing passing offenses down should make the Ravens much more optimistic about their chances of a deep playoff run."
The Ravens weren't far off from another AFC Championship appearance last season, but the defense couldn't keep points off the board against Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, losing 27-25 in western New York.
Baltimore will have to beat some high-octane offenses in the playoffs if it wants to reach the Super Bowl, so adding upgrades in the secondary was always going to be important in the offseason.
Now that the offseason is winding down and training camp is ramping up, it's time for these added pieces in the secondary to start doing what they were intended to do.
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