Pundits Say Loss to Steelers Is 'Fitting End' to Ravens' Season
There had been four lead changes in a wild fourth quarter in Sunday night's regular-season finale for the AFC North title between the Ravens and Steelers when kicker Tyler Loop set up for a game-winning 44-yard field goal attempt with two seconds left.
Loop was 29-for-29 from under 50 yards this season, but this was the rookie's first game-winning try. His kick sailed wide right, and the Steelers escaped with a 26-24 win at Acrisure Stadium.
It was that kind of season for the Ravens, one that began with them as Super Bowl favorites and ended with an 8-9 record.
"They thought they were headed to the postseason," The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec wrote. "They thought they were going to be the first team to three-peat in the AFC North. They thought they'd have a chance to salvage a disappointing regular season by going on a playoff run. Instead, they got one final reminder that this wasn't their year."
As has happened several times in recent years, the Ravens' season expired in gut-wrenching fashion. This one coming at the hands of their archrivals makes it sting that much more.
Here's a look at what pundits said after the game:
The Baltimore Sun’s Michael Howes: "The Ravens' season ended the way it often unfolded. Close. Winnable. Unfinished. Lamar Jackson and the offense finally found life in the fourth quarter, scoring twice after struggling for most of the night. Jackson made the right decisions late — throwing the ball away to avoid a costly sack, converting a key fourth down, setting up what should've been the game-winning field goal. It still wasn't enough. This time, it was the defense. All season, the Ravens have seesawed between which side shows up — and which one doesn't. And in the end, the Ravens' margin for error finally ran out."
The Baltimore Sun’s Bennett Conlin: "How did Baltimore lose that game? The Ravens jumped out to a 10-0 lead and looked poised to demolish a short-handed Steelers squad. Even after an awful stretch in the middle of the game, Baltimore rallied to take a 17-13 lead in the fourth quarter. Then the Ravens led, 24-20, later in the quarter. All they needed at the end was a 44-yard field goal to win it. The Ravens couldn't hold on, finding a way to lose a game it seemingly had in the bag at multiple points. It's a fitting end to the 2025 season."
The Baltimore Banner’s Jonas Shaffer: "It was a brutal ending. It was also a fitting ending. Lamar Jackson flashed his brilliance but not consistently. The secondary held up early before folding late. The pass rush was nonexistent. And the edges that the Ravens have long enjoyed under John Harbaugh — namely special teams excellence — disappeared at inopportune times."
Zrebiec: "The Ravens looked great offensively on their first drive, but then they went cold and did nothing for two and a half quarters. The defense started strong, only to let down in the second half and again when it needed a stop late in the fourth quarter to hold the lead. The Ravens never figured out a way to play complementary football all year, and their season ended short of the playoffs because of it. They really didn't play well enough in any facet this season, and that was reflected by their effort Sunday night."
Press Box’s Bo Smolka: "This wasn't officially a playoff game, but essentially it was, with the winner moving on and the loser going home. How is it that the Ravens keep finding the most agonizing ways to lose these games? Loop's kick surely will take some fans back to the AFC championship game at New England in 2011, when Billy Cundiff hooked a potential game-tying kick wide left with 15 seconds left. And after the Super Bowl run of 2012, the Ravens big-game performances is a litany of stunning mishaps: a 101-yard pick-six at Buffalo in the 2020 playoffs; Cincinnati's 98-yard fumble return in 2022; Zay Flowers' fumble lunging across the goal line against Kansas City in 2023; Mark Andrews fumbling, and later dropping a two-point conversion that would have tied the game, last season. Loop's 'wide right' moment fits right in."
Ravens Defense Struggled After Kyle Hamilton Left
Kyle Hamilton was named the Ravens' MVP by local reporters last week, and this game showed why he's so valuable.
The Ravens were ahead 10-3 early in the third quarter when Hamilton left the game with a concussion. With the All-Pro safety off the field, the Steelers offense came to life.
Pittsburgh scored three touchdowns and kicked a field goal on five second-half possessions.
"Losing Kyle Hamilton changed the game," Smolka wrote. "Until then, Hamilton had been the Ravens' most active defender, and he has been among their most fundamental tacklers all season. All facets of the Ravens' defense suffered in his absence. Hamilton's replacement, Ar'Darius Washington, missed tackles and struggled in coverage, including when Aaron Rodgers found tight end Pat Friermuth down the seam for a 31-yard pass that set up the Steelers' go-ahead score with 3:49 to play.
"The tackling overall got worse after Hamilton left, as the Steelers more than once turned a run or short swing pass into a moderate or long gain."
Zrebiec wrote: "Hamilton has been the Ravens' best defensive player, and his going down left Baltimore without a playmaker and a defensive leader. Rodgers took advantage, repeatedly attacking the middle of the field, particularly on third-and-long. The Ravens never could get off the field at the key moments."
Despite not having No. 1 wide receiver DK Metcalf, the 42-year-old Rodgers went 31-for-47 for 294 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions.
'Classic Jackson' Was on Display in Fourth Quarter
It's been a challenging season for Jackson, who missed four games due to various injuries, but he put the team on his back in the fourth quarter and reminded everyone why he's a two-time MVP.
Jackson connected with Flowers on touchdown passes of 50 and 64 yards in the quarter, each of which gave the Ravens the lead. Then with the season on the line, Jackson completed a 26-yard pass to tight end Isaiah Likely on fourth-and-7 from the 50-yard-line with 14 seconds left to set up a game-winning field goal attempt.
Jackson also threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Devontez Walker on the game's opening possession.
"It's great to see Lamar Jackson still has that magic in him," The Baltimore Banner’s Giana Han wrote. "The 50-yard touchdown to Flowers displayed that he's still got his elusiveness and that he can still hit a receiver with a deep ball. It never made sense to say it had disappeared during a tough season, but it was deflating to wait for it time and again, only for him to take a sack or be tackled by a shoestring. That probably shows how limited by injury he has been. This is a good sign that he can come back next season and still be the guy the Ravens need."
The Baltimore Banner’s Kyle Goon wrote: "Let's take a beat for Lamar Jackson. His aerial threat gave the offense life it was missing for so much of the season, and his escape on his near sack for the 50-yard touchdown to Zay Flowers was classic Jackson, just in his absolute prime."
Two Members of Ravens' Front Office Tabbed as Potential Future General Managers
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer compiled a list of potential future general managers. Two members of the Ravens' front office made the list:
Director of Player Personnel Mark Azevedo
"Azevedo's initial connection to the Ravens was through his shared alma mater with GM Eric DeCosta — both played at Division III Colby in Maine. He landed in Baltimore in 2005, and like so many others who've become GMs, steadily worked his way up, gaining experience on both the college and pro sides along the way. When Joe Hortiz left for the Chargers, Azevedo moved into an elevated role that pushed him closer to the decision-making process, which is essential to becoming a GM.
VP of Football Administration Nick Matteo
"Now in his seventh year with Baltimore, Matteo is another rising young exec on the operations side who has a background working at the league office, and has become a vital piece of DeCosta's department. As a point man in negotiations who brings intimate knowledge of football analytics (the Ravens have their own proprietary systems), Matteo could be appealing to an owner looking for a new age setup at a GM, or into the type of role that Mike Disner has in Detroit, Brandt Tilis has in Carolina or Tony Pastoors has with the Rams."
