OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The players for the Baltimore Ravens quietly emptied their lockers and bid their final goodbyes before heading out for another offseason full of uncertainty.

Meanwhile, general manager Ozzie Newsome and the rest of the front office is already laying the groundwork for the next team.

A season full off-field distractions and 19 players on injured reserve ended with a 35-31 gut-wrenching loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC divisional round. Now, Baltimore is faced with several hard decisions to make with its roster.

“The success we had as a team speaks to our resiliency,” said kicker Justin Tucker, who is one of 29 Ravens free agents this offseason. “Our ability to overcome adverse situations is very important in this league not just on the field and off the field as well. There’s all sorts of stuff going on early in the season that shouldn’t affect the way you play in any way whatsoever. Sometimes it can, but this was a team that was able to block out distractions and focus on winning games.”

The highest priority for Baltimore will be upgrading its secondary, which was hit hardest with injuries. The Ravens need another shutdown cornerback and a hard-hitting safety to improve that group.

Baltimore will also need to figure out what to do with running back Justin Forsett, who finished the regular season with a career-high 1,266 yards and eight touchdowns. Forsett signed with the team in the offseason for $730,000 — the veteran minimum. He is an unrestricted free agent and the Ravens must decide if they want to give him a multi-year deal.

Forsett would like to re-sign with Baltimore.

“I would love to be a part of it,” Forsett said staying with the franchise. “This is the organization that first gave me my shot, first opportunity and I would love to stay.”

Wide receiver Torrey Smith is also an unrestricted free agent after leading the team with a career-high 11 touchdowns. The Ravens also must address the contracts of defensive tackle Haloti Ngata and cornerback Lardarius Webb, who count for almost $30 million against the salary cap.

Linebacker Pernell McPhee is also a free agent that will likely be pursued by several teams. Defensive end Chris Canty will decide whether he will come back for his 11th season.

“You have to think about your future and whether your body can continue to take the pounding,” Canty said. “The last couple of years I’ve been pretty banged up. It’s a situation where I’ll take some time away from the game, spend some time with family and make a decision when we have to make a decision.”

If nothing else, Baltimore has shown it is a resilient organization. The team had to deal with the Ray Rice controversy at the beginning of the year and that dark cloud seemed to follow them for much of the season. Ngata was also suspended for the final four regular season games for using a banned substance.

Baltimore can only hope for a quiet offseason where player personnel can focus on football rather than outside distractions.

“I’ve never been around a team that has handled distractions and those kinds of things with minimal amount of drag like this team has, focused on the important things and became the very best football team they could be,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said.

NOTES: The magical postseason run for Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco finally ended on a last second “Hail Mary” pass that was knocked down in the end zone by the Patriots. Flacco, however, was the main reason Baltimore was even in the game. He completed 28 of 45 passes for 292 yards and four touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. It was the eighth straight game where Flacco threw at least two touchdown passes, setting an NFL record. He did have a costly turnover with 1:46 left in the game when he was intercepted in the end zone by New England safety Duron Harmon in what would have been the go-ahead touchdown. “I took my shot and it just didn’t work out,” Flacco said.

— The Ravens will have to upgrade their secondary if they want to be a legitimate Super Bowl contender in the 2015 season. Baltimore lost five cornerbacks to season-ending injuries, including its top playmaker, Jimmy Smith to a foot injury. The Ravens were forced to scramble to find healthy bodies and the secondary held up fairly well in the final weeks of the regular and first round playoff game against Pittsburgh. However, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady exploited that weakness, throwing for 367 yards and three touchdowns. Ravens cornerback Rashaan Melvin spent most of the season the practice squad and was beaten badly on a trick play when wide receiver Julian Edelman threw a 51-yard touchdown pass to fellow wide receiver Danny Amendola. “I thought the guys all played their hearts out, played hard and played well,” coach John Harbaugh said about his secondary. “They made plays, so give them credit for making some plays. So, I don’t want, I really don’t want to disparage our guys.”

–Running back Justin Forsett had a breakout season, and if he played his final game for the Baltimore Ravens, he certainly finished strong. Forsett had 129 yards on 24 carries, including a 16-yard touchdown run. After signing a one-year deal for the league minimum, Forsett led the team 1,266 yards and eight touchdowns. “At the end of the day, they just made one more play than we did,” running back Justin Forsett said after the game. “That’s what it usually comes down to.”

–Wide receiver Steve Smith paid huge dividends after he was signed as a free agent prior to the season. Smith led the team with 79 catches for 1,065 yards and six touchdowns. He also had five catches and 101 yards against the Steelers in the Wild Card round. He followed that up with another three catches for 44 yards with a touchdown against the Patriots. Smith plans to return for his 15th season. “Look forward to a better season next year and watch us go win it all,” Smith said on his Twitter account.