Four weeks ago, Dean Pees was asked what he would do in the fall after announcing his retirement as the Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator.

"Root for the Ravens!" Pees said on Jan. 1. "I wanted to retire a Raven, so I'll be cheering for the Ravens."

Those plans obviously shifted Tuesday, when Pees was named the defensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans.

Will the Ravens be upset by Pees' sudden change of heart? Not likely.

Even though the Ravens' offense was the biggest problem in the recently concluded 9-7 season, their defense was wildly inconsistent at times. The run defense had uncharacteristic lapses. The pass rush disappeared at critical times.

More importantly, the Ravens watched their playoff hopes end with a last-minute touchdown allowed for the second straight year.

During Pees' retirement news conference -- his opening statement was 634 words -- there was a sense that the time was right to move on. In promoting Wink Martindale to replace Pees, coach John Harbaugh said, "His aggressive mentality will serve to take our defense to new levels."

There will be speculation that Pees was asked to retire by Harbaugh after how quickly Pees became a coordinator again. But Pees had told colleagues that he was planning to call it quits before and throughout the 2017 season. The expectation was for Pees to walk away as soon as last season ended.

Pees will presumably say he couldn't pass up an opportunity to join the Titans. He gets to work with a former player in Mike Vrabel and gets to bring along his son Matt, who becomes a defensive assistant for Tennessee after coaching in high school.

The Ravens will always remember how Pees helped them win a Super Bowl in his first season as their defensive coordinator and guided them back to a top-10 defense after losing Ray Lewis and Ed Reed. Last season, Baltimore led the NFL with three shutouts and 34 takeaways.

The players respected Pees. Defensive back Lardarius Webb even said the team should build a statue for Pees on the day he told the players that he was retiring. The Ravens will see the Titans and Pees' defense this season, when Baltimore plays at Tennessee.

The swift change in direction is similar to three years ago, when Gary Kubiak put out a statement that he wasn't going to entertain head-coaching offers and would remain Baltimore's offensive coordinator. A week later, Kubiak became the head coach of the Denver Broncos.

There was more disappointment in Kubiak's abrupt about-face because the Ravens felt they were building something on offense. With Pees, it felt like his time was coming to a close.