The Ravens talked all summer about finishing games, holding fourth-quarter leads, and playing their best when it was needed.
That may become their identity. But in their home opener, it was not their reality.
Outscored 15-0 in the fourth quarter, the Ravens dropped a 24-17 decision to the New Orleans Saints that spoiled Head Coach Jesse Minter's regular-season home debut.
Baltimore was just 3-6 at M&T Bank Stadium in 2025, and this game was an opportunity to turn the page. Instead, the story looked familiar. Since 2019, Baltimore has lost 15 games in which it held a fourth-quarter lead.
When the Ravens didn't slam the door again, the Saints came marching through.
"Losses are all disappointing, especially at home," Minter said. "Everybody's just going to say, 'The same old thing of having a lead.' We will own this, we will look in the mirror, we'll figure out what we need to improve."
Lamar Jackson (21-for-31, 235 yards, one touchdown) could not save the Ravens with late-game heroics, and his final pass of the game was well off target and intercepted to end Baltimore's last hope.
Here are my thoughts after the Ravens fell to 1-1 heading into their Week 3 game in Brazil against the Dallas Cowboys:
The Ravens can't afford to let this defeat linger.
It's crucial for the Ravens to bounce back from this game as quickly as possible. Last season, they started 1-5. Injuries and losses kept piling up, and the slow start led to them missing the playoffs.
Defeating the Cowboys in Brazil seems more important now, and Baltimore may still be without some key pieces. Zay Flowers (hamstring) didn't play against the Saints, and Ronnie Stanley (toe) left in the third quarter. Nnamdi Madubuike (neck) and Teddye Buchanan (knee) have yet to make their 2026 debuts.
We'll learn more about their status as the week continues, and over the course of the season, we'll learn how the 2026 Ravens will respond to their first taste of adversity. Veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell is in his 19th season, and he's been part of plenty of locker rooms. He has no doubt the Ravens will figure out how to become better at putting teams away.
"Adversity is a truth teller," Campbell said. "How we respond is going to be crucial to who we are as a team, who this team is. I know what kind of guys we've got, and it's why I'm so disappointed now. You can't let games like this slip away. We have too many of the right pieces.
"There's a lot of excuses if people are looking for them. But at the end of the day, we just have to be more disciplined. We have to execute better."
Baltimore's defense needs to find more ways to get off the field.
The Saints were 8-of-15 on third-down attempts and 2-for-2 on fourth down. Saints quarterback Tyler Shough kept making clutch throws to Chris Olave (eight catches, 86 yards, one touchdown), Devaughn Vele (five catches, 64 yards), and tight end Juwan Johnson (four catches, 64 yards) to keep drives alive.
New Orleans' go-ahead touchdown was controversial, and the Ravens fell just short of having a sensational goal-line stand near the end of the game. But the officials ruled that Shough crossed the goal line on his fourth-down sneak for the game-winning touchdown. The call stood, and the Ravens fell.
The Ravens forced two turnovers in Week 1 which helped turn the game in their favor. But in this game, the Ravens missed too many tackles, and no matter what Minter dialed up as the defensive play caller, the pass coverage didn't marry with the pass rush when the Saints shifted to a quick-pass offense after their left tackle left with an injury. Baltimore didn't make enough plays.
"I have to give the Saints a lot of credit. They outplayed us, especially in the second half. We had a lot of opportunities to turn that game the way we wanted to turn it, didn't take advantage of it," Minter said. "You can look at things in all three phases. Start with me, start with the coaches first."
Straying from Derrick Henry in the second half can be dangerous.
In the first half, Henry appeared on his way to another big game with 11 carries for 51 yards and a touchdown, as well as two catches for 22 yards. But in the second half, Henry had just five carries for 17 yards, and one catch for a 3-yard loss.
The Ravens only had four drives in the second half, and they were forced to throw on their final possession after they fell behind with under two minutes to play. But Baltimore has been down this road before – not finishing the game with Henry and not getting a victory.
In the fourth quarter with the score tied at 17, the Ravens had third-and-1 from their own 35 and took a deep shot downfield. Jackson's pass intended for Chris Moore was broken up by Saints cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry. The Ravens punted and the Saints proceeded to drive nine plays, 68 yards for the winning touchdown with 1:32 left to play.
Henry said had no qualms with Offensive Coordinator Declan Doyle not calling for No. 22 on third-and-1.
"We're going to ride with 'Dec' whatever he calls," Henry said. "He wanted to take a shot and it didn't work out this time."
Henry said the Saints didn't make any second-half adjustments that prevented the Ravens from running more. But with Flowers not playing and Jackson sacked twice in the second half, the Ravens were shut out during the final 18 minutes of the game. Henry didn't get the ball, and the Ravens didn't find other ways to make the Saints pay
"I really didn't matter if they put people down (in the box) or not, we want to run the ball," Henry said. "We've got to dictate the line of scrimmage and me being effective, me doing my job. At the end of the day, we've just to be better. I've got to be better in the run game, we've got to be better as a team as an offense."
Baltimore's special teams need more consistency.
Barion Brown's 53-yard punt return late in the first half set up a field goal to give the Saints momentum. The Ravens also allowed a 66-yard kickoff return in Week 1.
Moore's knee barely touched the ground before he fumbled on a kickoff return to barely avoid what would've been a costly turnover for the Ravens.
Tyler Loop made a 49-yard field goal, but he also missed a kick from 49 yards earlier in the game when the ball was tipped by the Saints to deflect the kick wide. Meanwhile, Saints kicker Daniel Carlson went 3-for-3 on his field-goal attempts.
The Saints outplayed Baltimore on special teams, and that was a crucial part of their winning formula.
Extra Points
- Rookie cornerback Chandler Rivers, who was inactive in Week 1, made his NFL debut and was in the game on Baltimore's second defensive play. He made a tackle for a five-yard loss in second the second quarter in the red zone to help hold Saints to a field goal.
- Playing with a heavily-wrapped hand, Trey Hendrickson got his first sack for the Ravens in the third quarter.
- Stanley left the game late in the third quarter, and Carson Vinson took over. "Give credit to Ronnie, he gave us everything he had," Minter said. "We felt at some point that might happen."
- Rashod Bateman (seven catches, 88 yards, one touchdown) had a strong game as the No. 1 receiver with Flowers sidelined. It was more yards than he had in any game last season.
- The Ravens went in reverse in the third quarter after taking over on the Saints' 49-yard line. Moore was called for a false start, Jackson passed to Henry for minus-three years, Jackson was sacked, and then threw a long incompletion to Moore.
