Not many teams have a guy like Ravens pass rush coach Chuck Smith.
Outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy is heading into his 11th season with his fifth NFL team. He’s explored the market as a free agent and twice decided to sign with the Ravens. Smith, who played nine seasons in the league, was a major draw.
“A lot of places worry about scheme; this place worries about scheme and technique, and he’s a pass rush technician, and he’s very good,” Van Noy said.
As a player, Smith recorded 58.5 sacks in 125 career games. After his retirement, he decided to share his knowledge. He coached at his alma mater, Tennessee, and ran camps and trained individual players. He served as a pass rush specialist on the 2009 New York Jets, a team that reached the AFC championship game. In 2023, the Ravens offered him a job.
The Ravens’ defense last season, led by then-coordinator Mike Macdonald, was known for its fluidity and its ability to disguise pressures. Smith trained both the interior linemen and the outside linebackers, helping the Ravens finish with the most team sacks (60) and the fourth-most quarterback hits (117) in the league.
Over the offseason, the outside linebackers lost Jadeveon Clowney, who led the position group with 9.5 sacks. Van Noy decided to return, however, and the Ravens drafted Adisa Isaac in the third round to round out a group that features Odafe Oweh, David Ojabo and Tavius Robinson. Smith isn’t worried about the loss of Clowney or the high expectations set by last season.
“If we don’t reach the goal that we want? Everybody wants to be the best pass rush in the league,” Smith said. “But from my standpoint and the guys‘, if it doesn’t happen, we’re not going to be like ‘Oh man.’ We’re going to get back to the drawing board and see what happens moving forward. … All I want to do, my goal is to really impact quarterbacks by beating them up. Simple as that. If we beat up the quarterbacks, and his ending’s not always the way he wants, then we’ve had an impact.”
Here’s what Smith had to say about each of the outside linebackers he’s working with:
Kyle Van Noy
He’s the veteran of the group, but he approaches pass rush lessons with youthful vigor. That’s because Van Noy, an 11-year veteran, feels relatively new to the pass rush. He’s pointed out multiple times to the media, and evidently to Smith, that other teams did not have him focus simply on this particular skill set.
“And he just loves it,” Smith said. “We talk pass rush all the time, when he comes off the field, we’ll be walking by each other, we’ll talk about pass rush. In the offseason, he’ll send me some videos because he put in a lot of work this offseason as well as last offseason.”
In Baltimore, Van Noy had the chance to be the nickel rusher, a guy who comes off the bench when the Ravens want to rush the quarterback with more linebackers instead of defensive backs. He finished with nine sacks, the most of his career, and did it in just 14 games. He said Smith played a part in his career resurgence.
Van Noy has stepped up as a leader for the group, Smith said. Through training camp, he rotates in with the starters and has appeared to pressure the quarterback (the defense pulls back before actually sacking the passer). He’s mostly been a technician rather than an every-down player, and Smith said Van Noy is OK with that.
“And it’s cool to get a guy at this stage that says you know what, I’m cool to basically come off the bench, so to speak … to come off and accept my role and thrive at it,” Smith said.
Odafe Oweh
Smith wants to set the record straight about Oweh.
Much was made of the fact that the Ravens picked up Oweh’s fifth-year option after the former first-round pick had just five sacks in 13 games. He had a 15.5% pressure rate, ranking 18th in the league, but it hides the fact that many pressures should have been sacks.
Smith acknowledged that Oweh had some missed sacks. But he said you need reps to produce numbers.
“He ends up being on a team that brings in two veterans that get over 250 snaps [each], easy,” Smith said. “If he gets those other five games [back from injury] and those arguably 400, 500 reps, he’s a double-digit sacker.”
Oweh has looked explosive through camp. He’s “sacked” the quarterbacks numerous times and is constantly giving the offensive linemen trouble.
David Ojabo
The 2022 second-round pick has had plenty of bad injury luck. He has played just five NFL games after multiple season-ending injuries. He returned to the field for individual drills in organized team activities and minicamp, and he joined team drills in training camp. As the weeks went on, he went from playing here and there with the second team to getting a large share of reps.
But when he didn’t dress for the preseason game, the Ravens revealed he still hadn’t been cleared for games. That update provides some explanation for why Ojabo is still missing some of the explosiveness he has previously flashed. He appears to be getting closer to top form, becoming more of a nuisance to the quarterbacks during practice.
“I can’t get into the medical stuff, but I know he’s working hard,” Smith said. “I know he’s had a good spin today. I know he’s running to the ball. I know he’s striking spots. And I know he’s showing signs that he’s improving. ... He’s out there fighting. He’s out there scraping.”
Adisa Isaac
The third-round draft pick came on Smith’s radar when he watched Penn State “beat the brakes out of Auburn” in 2022. Isaac contributed one sack and two other tackles for loss. Smith started watching his film and noticed he was explosive, powerful and could change direction. According to coach John Harbaugh, Smith influenced the Ravens’ decision to draft Isaac.
Isaac’s Ravens debut was delayed when he tweaked his hamstring in rookie camp. That sidelined him for over two weeks of training camp. Isaac only returned to the field Aug. 6, so the team has slowly been ramping him up. He has started participating in team drills, mostly on the third team.
Isaac clearly has a lot to learn after missing critical early weeks in a rookie’s career. He has missed a few tackles when he looked unsure of his assignment. But he’s also demonstrated his strength as he pushed past linemen, as well as his speed and explosiveness as he ran down the quarterback.
“He’s just getting started, and it’s exciting to see him do some good things,” Smith said.
Tavius Robinson
Robinson “is a glass eater.” Smith is impressed with Robinson’s willingness to play every rep he’s offered.
“Every play, and I’m not exaggerating, he has given effort,” Smith said. “Every day, Tavius Robinson listens to the coach. Every day, he works out hard; he’s early. Every day, he gets in those drills, he puts hands on people in the run.”
Heading into his second NFL season, Robinson is poised to make a jump.
“And remember, Tavius played last year,” Smith said. “Tavius was in big games early on. He’s not like a second-year guy that’s never played. He went out there and smashed with some of the great teams we’ve played.”
Now that he’s familiar with the speed of the game, he’s been playing fast and aggressive. He’s a regular guest in the backfield, constantly getting to the pocket. After playing more than 40% of the defensive snaps in five games last season, Robinson has a solid foundation to build on. And with both Ojabo’s and Isaac’s health in question, there’s a real opportunity for him to get regular playing time.
