Roquan Smith On Ravens Defense: 'We’re Just a Bunch of Hungry Dogs!'

Roquan Smtih compared playing and preparing for his 2023 Baltimore Ravens defense to that of a safari out in the jungle. Is anyone going to argue his point?

The Baltimore Ravens defense in 2023 has been one of the scariest units in the modern NFL. 

They were the first defensive unit in NFL history to lead the league in points allowed (16.5 per game), sacks (60), and takeaways (31). The triple crown victory put them on a pedestal among the other great defenses of the last 20 years like the 2003 Buccaneers, 2013 Legion of Boom, and the Ray Lewis-led Ravens in 2000. 

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To the players on the unit though, their success this season wasn't an accident or surprise. 

"We embrace it every single day [with] the way we go out to work, as far as practice, as well [as] when we go out to games," Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith said. "We want cats to know, ‘Hey, you just played the 2023 Baltimore Ravens, and those guys knocked your [stuff] off,’ or whatever the case may be."

Smith has enjoyed a dominant season with Baltimore in his first full year with the team. The former Bear totaled over 150 tackles, eight passes defended, and five tackles for loss. 

As leader of the vaunted group, Smith has made it clear that it's the mentality of the group that brings out the best in all of them. 

Even if it means going on a safari every once in a while. 

"[We’re] just a bunch of hungry dogs," Smith explained. "Like, have you ever been on a safari, [or] have you ever been in the wild and just seen cats that are trying to survive and trying to make their next meal? I feel like we have that mentality, and we know [that] if one gets a kill, we’re all going to share it, at the end of the day. And when you have that mentality, man, it’s pretty sweet."

There's no denying that the mindset of Baltimore's defense works. It has helped them stymie some of the best offenses in the league during the regular season. 

Ravens Defense Hits Historic Mark

It's also why the team isn't shying away from conversations surrounding their 2019 failings - that Ravens team was the top seed in the AFC as well before being upset in their first game. 

Smith is one of the best linebackers on the planet, on one of the best defenses in the NFL. If he believes that playing his defense is akin to being out in the wild, you would be hard-pressed to find a player (or quarterback) who disagrees with him.