OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ravens coach John Harbaugh and his players used the bye week to recharge and get ready for a final push to the playoffs.

The coaches and players returned Monday and began preparing for a Week 12 road game against the struggling Saints, who fell to 4-6 after losing to the Bengals, 27-10. The Ravens stand at 6-4 and are only a half-game behind first-place Cincinnati.

However, if the post-season started today, Baltimore would miss the cut. Miami would get the final spot because it has better conference record (5-2) than the Ravens (3-4).

Nonetheless, Harbaugh was optimistic his players were ready to finish strong.

“Guys are feeling re-energized,” Harbaugh said. “It’s like coming back to school — everybody was happy and excited to be back. They were excited about the workout. The players took some time off. We got away and emotionally recharged a little bit, but also physically recharged.

“I’m not sure you realize — you don’t realize how exhausted you are until you get a chance to take a deep breath and relax. The next thing you know, you’re like, ‘Wow, this has really been helpful.’ So everybody gets a bye week. We had ours this week, and we hope to make the most of it going forward for the rest of the season.”

Baltimore does have history on its side.

Since arriving in the NFL in 1996, the Ravens have won at least six games at this point of the season eight times. They qualified for the playoffs in seven of those eight seasons (the exception being 2004 with a 9-7 finish).

The Ravens close out the regular season with three games at home and three on the road. Baltimore will likely have to win four of six games to make the playoffs. Only three teams left the on the schedule currently have winning records.

Baltimore will head into the New Orleans in almost the same shape as when it entered the bye. The Ravens’ top cornerback Jimmy Smith is out for the season, prompting Harbaugh to make major adjustments to the secondary.

Following the 43-23 loss to the Steelers in Week 9, Baltimore cut cornerbacks Dominique Franks and Chykie Brown and claimed Danny Gorrer off waivers from the Detroit Lions. Baltimore also promoted undrafted rookie Tramain Jacobs from the practice squad and moved Anthony Levine from safety to cornerback.

The move was effective in a 21-7 victory over the Titans, but Baltimore was facing a rookie quarterback. The first big test will come this week against Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who is a much more proven commodity and can throw the ball deep downfield.

“He’s one of a kind,” Harbaugh said about Brees. “He’s the classic West Coast operator. You think of the guys in that offense — Joe Montana-type guys that didn’t have the size, but got the ball out quick, made the reads quickly, quick decisions.

“He’s really uncanny in the pocket. He has an uncanny ability to keep a play alive in the pocket, or outside of the pocket and find someone to throw to, or just get rid of it. He takes very few sacks. He holds the ball, but he takes very few sacks. That’s a gift. [He is] one of the all-time great statistic quarterbacks in the history of the game. [It is] going to be a big challenge for us.”

Ultimately, the Ravens control their playoff destiny. Much of the team’s success will hinge on whether the offense can get back to its early-season form. Harbaugh hopes the adjustments offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak made over the bye week will correct some of those problems.

“You can’t turn the ball over,” Harbaugh said. “You have to find a balance where the big plays out-shadow the turnovers by a wide margin. Third down has been important for us. You go back two weeks ago, if we convert on third down, we’re a whole different offense up there in Pittsburgh, so that would’ve been big for us. And that’s something over the last few weeks that has not always gone our way.”

NOTES, QUOTES

–Anthony Levine has been a key special teams team player, but will be getting more reps with the defense after being moved from safety to cornerback. He is expected to help fill the void with the loss of Jimmy Smith, who is out for the year with a foot injury. Associate head coach Jerry Rosburg, who also handles special teams, said guys like Anthony Levine often develop their skills on offense and defense while he’s playing special teams. Rosburg was not surprised when coach John Harbaugh decided to promote Levine. “This is something we actually preach, and we hope that our players that are just playing special teams develop into players on their sides of the ball as well,” Rosburg said. “It’s my belief — perhaps it’s a slanted belief — but it’s my belief that if you can be a good special teams player, you should be a good player on offense and defense because it takes a lot of skill to play on special teams.”

–Second-year safety Matt Elam was limited to just 15 snaps in Week 10 against the Titans. Elam, a starter since his rookie year, has missed some crucial tackles and has been part of some breakdowns in coverage.

Defensive coordinator Dean Pees said the team is still confident in Elam.

“To me, the situation with Matt is I think everybody is reading a little more into it than we certainly are,” Pees said. “He’s a starting safety for us; they all are. What we’ve tried to do — I kind of mentioned this a week or two ago — is we need to find guys and what they do best and then put them into that role, and every week that role could change. He could play 40 snaps one week, and he can play 15 the next.”

Pees said a player’s role is largely based on what the game plan is going in against a certain offense and the opposing quarterback.”

Elam could play a larger role this week against New Orleans as the Ravens secondary will need added support going against Drew Brees.

–After a strong start, quarterback Joe Flacco has struggled recently. He has thrown five interceptions in his past four games. Part of the problem is that Flacco has not been able to effectively handle aggressive blitz packages.

After the bye, Flacco is the 12th-ranked quarterback in the NFL, throwing for 2,521 with a 90.7 passer rating. He also has 17 touchdowns with eight interceptions and has been sacked 14 times.

Offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak spent the bye week trying to find ways to put Flacco in a better position to succeed.

“You go through phases throughout the course of a season,” Kubiak said. “Joe went through a really hot stage [for] about three or four weeks, [and] then we went through a stage here where we turned the ball over. We calmed that down last weekend, which is a big reason why we were able to be successful.

But I’m trying to go back and really look at the things that he’s very comfortable with and doing very well, and maybe some of the things I’ve asked him to do here over the course of a few weeks that maybe got him out of that comfort zone.”

REPORT CARD

–PASSING OFFENSE: C — Quarterback Joe Flacco started strong but has faded recently. Flacco is the 12th-ranked quarterback in the NFL, throwing for 2,521 with a 90.7 passer rating. He also has 17 touchdowns with eight interceptions. Wide receiver Torrey Smith has been strong with five touchdown receptions in his past five games and has a team-best six on the season. On the other hand, wide receiver Steve Smith has been limited to less than 40 yards receiving in the past three games after catching more than 100 yards receiving in four of his first six games. Tight end Owen Daniels has become a go-to target for Flacco and has filled the void for the loss of Dennis Pitta. Baltimore’s offense is ranked 12th overall in the NFL.

–RUSHING OFFENSE: A — Justin Forsett has proven he can carry the load as a starter. He is ranked seventh in the NFL with 721 yards on 133 carries. He also has five touchdowns. Baltimore has done well establishing an effective ground attack in most of its games this season.

–PASS DEFENSE: C-minus — Baltimore has struggled against the pass this season and has allowed several big plays. The Ravens overhauled its secondary following a 43-23 loss to the Steelers in Week 9. The season-ending foot injury to cornerback Jimmy Smith will be hard to overcome in the remaining games.

–RUSH DEFENSE: A — The Ravens have not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 20 straight games — the longest current streak in the NFL. Teams have made adjustments to try and get yards on the ground but the Ravens have met every challenge so far. The Baltimore defense is ranked 13th in the NFL.

–SPECIAL TEAMS: C-plus — Returner Jacoby Jones has made several big play, but has also committed some key fumbles. Justin Tucker is 19-for-22 on field-goal attempts with a long of 53 yards. Coverage on special teams has been solid and Sam Koch remains one of the top punters in the NFL.

–COACHING: C-plus — Despite some off-the-field turmoil with the Ray Rice situations and key injuries, Baltimore remains in the playoff hunt. Coach John Harbaugh has made some questionable calls, but the team managed to emerge with a winning record after 10 games. Offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak spent the bye week trying to make some adjustments to help quarterback Joe Flacco and that will be a key storyline for the remainder of the season.