OTL: Limping Into the Bye Week at 1-5

The Baltimore Ravens are 1-5, and have lost four straight games. Is this real life? Yes, I am sad to report that it is.

2025 Ravens WITH and WITHOUT Lamar Jackson:

PPG: 32.8 —–> 6.5
YPG: 338.0 —> 251.8

In 4 weeks of play prior to injury, Lamar led the league in touchdowns (10) and passer rating (130.5). The 32.8 PPG was ranked No. 3.

We already knew Lamar was colossally… pic.twitter.com/qcLa9YSNTz

— Sarah Ellison (@sgellison) October 13, 2025

So remember when Lamar Jackson couldn’t be the MVP because the Ravens were too good around him and Derrick Henry was a big part of the success? Well, life without Jackson is making him look like the most valuable player. Sarah Ellison’s tweet kind of spells it out perfectly. What I like the most is the idea of how much Jackson covers up the flaws with the roster and the organization. With Jackson the Ravens had a prolific offense but were struggling to win due to their defense and offensive line. Without Jackson they are borderline unwatchable if you’re not a die-hard fan. The next time you wonder how good the Ravens QB1 is remember this, because his absence is crippling for the whole team.

New John Harbaugh face alert pic.twitter.com/5v1GF0MeEp

— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) October 12, 2025

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words but this can be summed up in one sentence, nine words and a comma: Coach, this is how we all feel right now. This look, right after Zay Flowers had ONE of his fumbles is a visual representation of what watching the Ravens feels like.

This man Harbaugh said “my plan was to play both Quarterbacks today…” I WANT THIS MAN GONE!!! pic.twitter.com/e0KOWez7XI

— Nitro The Wunderkind (@Nitro_Quantum) October 12, 2025

What kind of revisionist history is this? John Harbaugh states that he planned on playing both quarterbacks all along. He’s making it seem like the Ravens didn’t bench Cooper Rush for Tyler Huntley after the fans could be heard through the TV chanting Tyler Huntley’s name. There was no quarterback back and forth. There was Huntley going in there and trying to save the day after Rush failed for three and a half quarters. This is the kind of answer people are getting tired of hearing, because you don’t need to be more than a fan to see through it.

Harbaugh: “We can accomplish what we want to accomplish. We’re the type of team that could do it.”

— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) October 12, 2025

The sky is falling for the Ravens but John thinks the Ravens are the kind of team that can turn it around. To be fair, the bye week is perfectly timed this season. After the bye week the Ravens more than likely get Lamar Jackson back against a set of lesser teams. There is some reason for positivity. It’s still hard to question if an easier road makes things any easier for the Ravens. Harbaugh seems confident, and on paper, the talent is there to turn around the season. Still, this is a team that is playing abysmal football at the moment.

Henry Brown of Sport’s Illustrated writes:

They refused to stop prematurely giving the ball back to the Rams, with their three credited turnovers doing little justice to the Ravens’ loose hands and shoddy decision-making.

Backup quarterback Cooper Rush threw an early pick and wide receiver Zay Flowers coughed up two fumbles, but they also went 1/4 on fourth down and rarely put up competitive throws during their rare chances to carve into the Rams’ advantage.

“A refusal to stop giving the ball away” is a good way to put it. It seemed like the Ravens were a team destined to lose the game – even if the Rams didn’t want to give their best performance. While the offense was sparked a bit by Huntley coming into the game, he isn’t immune to the horribleness – he threw the ball away on a fourth down attempt. The Ravens squandered an opportunity at the one yard line right before the half and put on a clinic on wasting talent of a generational running back and making bad play calls. The Ravens handed the Rams just about every chance to bury them. Yes, this season has a tank of hope that isn’t depleted yet. Let’s not act like the Ravens could be 5-1 instead of 1-5. Their record is incredibly earned, and reflective of their performance as a bad team.

This is normally where I would cut to the AFC North happenings. The Ravens are not relevant in that conversation though. Short and sweet today because I was taught if you have nothing nice to say you probably shouldn’t say anything at all. I’m normally bad at this policy but this Ravens team certainly elicits some saddening silence, doesn’t it?

Trust me, nobody has anything nice to say and it’s all about the same.

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