Haloti Ngata, Chris Canty, Timmy Jernigan, Brandon Williams, Brent Urban, Pernell McPhee, Terrence Cody, DeAngelo Tyson, Kapron Lewis-Moore, Levi Brown, Derrick Hopkins, Jamie Meder, A.J. Pataiali’i
Skinny: This group will miss the production of Arthur Jones, but there’s no plenty of potential for improvement with the selections of Jernigan and Urban in the first four rounds of the 2014 draft.
Player to watch: Lewis-Moore was a well-regarded NFL prospect before tearing his ACL 16 months ago, but he’s healthy and ready to be a factor in the defensive line rotation.
Player to worry: Cody was re-signed to a one-year contract this offseason, but the 2010 second-round pick will need a strong summer just to remain on the roster, let alone be a real factor in the rotation.
LINEBACKERS (13)
Daryl Smith, C.J. Mosley, Elvis Dumervil, Courtney Upshaw, Terrell Suggs, Arthur Brown, John Simon, Josh Bynes, Albert McClellan, Adrian Hamilton, Xavius Boyd, Ryan Jones, Zach Orr
Skinny: This unit is probably the deepest on the entire roster as the Ravens have six or seven linebackers who would start on many teams around the league.
Player to watch: Mosley is expected to be an immediate starter and needs to be after the Ravens elected to take value over a position of need in the first round of the draft.
Player to worry: McClellan started to slide down the depth chart last year, and his special-teams ability may no longer be enough to keep him on the team with another younger inside linebacker being added to the mix.
CORNERBACKS (8)
Lardarius Webb, Jimmy Smith, Chykie Brown, Asa Jackson, Sammy Seamster, Tramain Jacobs, Deji Olatoye, Avery Patterson
Skinny: The starting duo of Webb and Smith can match up well against most teams, but depth behind them is a major concern after the Ravens didn’t take a cornerback in this year’s draft.
Player to watch: Seamster is a 6-foot defensive back from Middle Tennessee State who has the preferred size to play cornerback at the next level and was one of the headliners of the rookie free agent class.
Player to worry: Jackson will compete for the No. 3 cornerback job with Brown but has shown very little in his first two seasons other than two suspensions for Adderall use.
SAFETIES (8)
Matt Elam, Terrence Brooks, Darian Stewart, Jeromy Miles, Omar Brown, Anthony Levine, Brynden Trawick, Dexter Moody
Skinny: A defense that once had future Hall of Famer Ed Reed playing deep center field for more than a decade is now projected to have a second-year strong safety and a rookie free safety handling starting duties
Player to watch: Brooks was an athletic and steady player at Florida State, but the third-round pick will need to bring play-making ability that was lacking for the Baltimore secondary a year ago.
Player to worry: Brown has been a preseason fan favorite over the last couple years, but it’s now or never for him to carve out a role in the defense or as a consistent special-teams contributor.
SPECIALISTS (4)
Sam Koch, Morgan Cox, Justin Tucker, Richie Leone
Skinny: Unlike last season, this group will have some competition.
Player to watch: Leone was a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award for three straight years at Houston and also handled kickoff and placekicking duties during his senior year.
Player to worry: Koch carries a lofty $2.8 million salary cap figure, but the Ravens have more than $5 million in cap room and won’t be desperate to cut him unless Leone beats him out for the job.
