BALTIMORE — The play that best summed up the relentlessness of the New Orleans Saints’ defense in Sunday’s 24-17 upset win over the Baltimore Ravens was the unit’s final one.

Rushing from the inside, rather than off the edge, Carl Granderson spun around Ravens rookie guard Vega Ioane to get a clear path to Lamar Jackson. The two-time MVP quarterback, sensing the pressure, let it fly. The problem? Jackson had little time to set up his throw.

The ball sailed over Rashod Bateman’s head, landing right in the hands of Saints safety Julian Blackmon.

“Pheeew,” defensive end Chase Young said, sighing in relief. “Literally. Phew.”

Young may have been put at ease seeing the Saints clinch a statement-defining upset victory, but it was the Ravens who had it the toughest.

After putting up 41 points in an electric season debut a week ago, Baltimore was held to just 17 points against New Orleans — only three in the second half. The Saints’ physicality, both at the line of scrimmage and in the secondary, appeared to wear down a Ravens unit that initially seemed on pace for another breezy afternoon.

But nothing was easy for Baltimore. Not for Jackson, who completed less than half of his second-half passes (8 for 15 for 65 yards). Not for star running back Derrick Henry, who went from averaging 4.6 yards per carry to 3.4 after halftime. Not for anybody.

Just the way the Saints planned.

“We are a physical group, bruh,” Saints safety Justin Reid said. “This is one of the most physical defenses — and I pride myself on my physicality — that I’ve been a part of. We come downhill. We hit people in the mouth. And it wears on them as the game goes on.

“We gave up, what, three points in the second half? Unbelievable performance, man.”

The Ravens, to be fair, were missing star receiver Zay Flowers because of a hamstring injury. But that hardly looked like a problem early. In the first half, the Ravens strung together lengthy drives, relying on their bread and butter. Henry consistently put them in favorable down-and-distances. Jackson wiggled free, finding his targets downfield. Bateman and tight end Mark Andrews looked well-equipped to make up for Flowers’ absence.

But as the game folded, Reid said he started to notice a “crack in the armor.” He first observed it when Granderson got a hand up to block Tyler Loop’s 49-yard field goal attempt, although the Ravens would go on to easily score on their ensuing drive. But that play, he thought, started to shift the momentum.

New Orleans’ game plan also mattered. To combat Henry, the Saints consistently rotated their defensive linemen — notably pairing Cam Jordan and Anfernee Jennings, two reliable run defenders, to set the edge. To limit the explosiveness of Baltimore’s passing attack, the Saints deployed zone coverages that dared Jackson to settle for throws underneath — and indeed, Jackson went from having 15 completions of at least 10 yards in Week 1 to just eight on Sunday.

They mixed in linebacker Kaden Elliss on blitzes, an effective move that resulted in four pressures, according to Pro Football Focus’ initial charting. They also contained him in the pocket: Jackson rushed for only 34 yards on four carries and was sacked three times.

“I feel like Staley doesn’t get enough credit,” Saints wide receiver Chris Olave said, referring to defensive coordinator Brandon Staley. “He puts the players in a great position to succeed.”

“They did a great job with limiting the explosives,” Henry told reporters in Baltimore’s locker room. “They did a great job of being where they needed to be and for those not to occur.”

For Saints coach Kellen Moore, perhaps the most impressive aspect of Sunday’s defensive performance was that the unit never got rattled when Jackson made plays.

And that was true even in the second half. In the third quarter, he Ravens had reached the red zone — only to get knocked out of the area on a huge third-down sack from Young and settling for a 49-yard field goal. And on the final drive, the Ravens quickly reached New Orleans’ 37-yard line — but Granderson and Blackmon came through.

“Our guys just didn’t stop,” Moore said.

That’s been a theme for the Saints’ defense over the last two seasons. And on Sunday, that relentlessness helped earn them their biggest win in the Moore and Staley era.