The Baltimore Ravens’ 2025 season, once brimming with Super Bowl aspirations, has veered sharply off course after a bruising 37-20 defeat at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 4. Played at Arrowhead Stadium on September 28, the game not only marked Baltimore’s third loss in four outings but further exposed a roster battered by injuries and defensive woes. What’s gone wrong for a team so many pundits pegged as favorites?
Coming into the season, optimism was sky-high in Baltimore. According to The Athletic, 28 NFL staffers picked the Ravens to win the AFC, with 26 predicting them to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. The NFL itself seemed to buy into the hype, front-loading Baltimore’s schedule with marquee matchups. The Ravens enjoyed the national spotlight—Sunday Night Football in Week 1, Monday Night Football in Week 3, and a late CBS window in Week 4, broadcast to 93 percent of the country. Their opening games drew huge audiences: the Week 3 clash with Detroit averaged 22.85 million viewers, the largest Monday Night Football Week 3 audience since ESPN acquired the rights in 2006; Week 1’s wild 41-40 loss to Buffalo was watched by 24.7 million, the biggest SNF opener since 2022.
But the story on the field has been far less glamorous. The Ravens’ Week 4 collapse against Kansas City was emblematic of their mounting troubles. Patrick Mahomes carved up Baltimore’s defense for 270 yards and four touchdowns, while rookie Xavier Worthy’s dynamic play helped reignite the Chiefs’ offense. The Ravens trailed by 10 at halftime and never found their footing, ultimately falling to 1-3—a record that has historically spelled doom for playoff hopes. Since 1990, only 35 teams have reached the postseason after a 1-3 start, an 11 percent success rate. No team in the Super Bowl era has ever won it all after such a stumble out of the gate.
“The three losses are against probably three of the top teams in the league, for sure,” head coach John Harbaugh reflected after the game, referencing defeats to the Bills, Lions, and now Chiefs. “That’s just the hand we’ve been dealt, but it doesn’t really matter. We’ve got to win the next game. Then, once you win the next game, then you have a chance to start stacking some wins. That’s what we’ve got to do big-picture-wise.”
But stacking wins will be a tall order given the Ravens’ growing injury list. The most significant blow came midway through the third quarter in Kansas City when quarterback Lamar Jackson, the two-time NFL MVP, exited with a hamstring strain after being sacked by George Karlaftis. Jackson, who had not missed a game since late 2022, sat on the sideline flexing his right leg and did not return. Harbaugh later told reporters, “There’s nothing that looks like it’s season-ending by any stretch for anybody.” When pressed on whether Jackson could have returned if the game were closer, he admitted, “I really don’t have the answer to that right now.” Jackson was not made available to the media after the game.
Before his injury, Jackson endured his roughest outing of the campaign, facing pressure on a staggering 56 percent of his dropbacks—the highest rate of his career for a game with at least 10 attempts. He threw his first interception of the season and later fumbled after a botched exchange with center Tyler Linderbaum. The offensive line, already under scrutiny for its porous protection, offered little respite as Jackson was harried by Kansas City’s relentless pass rush.
If Jackson is unable to suit up for the upcoming clash against the Houston Texans, backup Cooper Rush will make his first start for Baltimore. “Praying for Lamar,” safety Kyle Hamilton said postgame. “I don’t know how serious it is, but we’ll see.”
The quarterback situation isn’t the only headache for Harbaugh. The Ravens’ defense, which currently ranks last in the NFL and is allowing a league-worst 33.3 points per game, has been decimated by injuries. Linebacker Roquan Smith (hamstring), cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey (calf) and Nate Wiggins (elbow), and offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley (ankle) all exited the Chiefs game and did not return. Defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike (neck) and defensive end Broderick Washington (ankle) were placed on injured reserve the day before the game. Outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy (hamstring) and nose tackle Travis Jones (knee) were inactive.
“Obviously, it sucks,” running back Justice Hill said of the mounting injuries. “Hopefully, they return quickly.” The Ravens finished the Chiefs game missing seven defensive starters, a staggering figure for any NFL team. Their only win so far came against the Cleveland Browns, a team with well-documented offensive struggles, and even then Baltimore surrendered 17 points. The defense’s inability to stop anyone has left the offense—now possibly without Jackson—under immense pressure to compensate.
It’s not just the defense that’s under fire. The offensive line has struggled to protect its quarterback, as evidenced by Jackson being sacked seven times in the Week 3 loss to Detroit. The Ravens have been unable to establish a consistent rhythm, and turnovers have proved costly in close games. Their Week 1 collapse against Buffalo, where they blew a 15-point lead in the final minutes, set a troubling tone for the season.
Looking ahead, the schedule offers little respite. The next four weeks feature no games in major national television windows: Houston Texans at home on October 5, Los Angeles Rams on October 12, followed by a bye, then the Chicago Bears on October 26. The next high-profile matchup comes on Thanksgiving night, November 27, when the Ravens host division rival Cincinnati Bengals in a game that could have major playoff implications—assuming Baltimore can right the ship before then.
Despite the adversity, Harbaugh remains cautiously optimistic. “I’m concerned but not overwhelmed by the 1-3 start,” he said. “We just need to focus on the next game and try to build some momentum.”
Yet, history is not on Baltimore’s side. The franchise has started 1-3 only twice before, in 2005 and 2015, missing the playoffs both times. With no clear timeline for Jackson’s return and a defense in shambles, the Ravens’ Super Bowl dreams are on life support. The coming weeks will test the mettle of this roster and coaching staff like never before.
For now, all eyes are on the status of Lamar Jackson and whether the Ravens can overcome this avalanche of setbacks. Baltimore’s season, once so full of promise, now hangs in the balance as the team prepares for a stretch of must-win games. The NFL may have front-loaded the schedule with Ravens games for maximum exposure, but the drama is just getting started in Baltimore.
