Pundits Debate Whether Ravens Are Closer to Week 1 or Week 2 Version
It's been said many times that the NFL is a week-to-week league. Two weeks into the season, the Ravens are a prime example of why the sentiment rings true.
Pundits raved about the new era Ravens and lauded first-year Head Coach Jesse Minter and Offensive Coordinator Declan Doyle after Week 1's impressive win over the Indianapolis Colts on the road.
After the Ravens let Sunday's game against the underdog New Orleans Saints slip away in haunting familiar fashion, pundits scrutinized the team and coaches, with some declaring it was the "same old Ravens."
Hot takes and flip-flops aside, which version of the Ravens is closer to reality?
Three of The Athletic’s NFL writers weighed in. Here are some excerpts:
Dan Pompei: "Their performance was sloppy — not unusual for many teams early in the season. The Ravens have committed 17 penalties in two weeks. That cannot continue if the Ravens are going to be contenders. But this is a talented team that's capable of high-end football, as they showed in Week 1 against the Colts. It will be a surprise if the Ravens don't rebound and remain one of the better teams in the AFC. They just need to get in a groove."
Mike Jones: "The Ravens are somewhere in the middle, but a smidge closer to the Week 1 product. Many elements of Sunday's performance resemble the Ravens of last season (penalties and ill-timed turnovers, a couple of head-scratcher offensive play calls, late-game defensive collapse). But the roster and energy within the organization improved. It's important to remember that Baltimore has a 30-year-old rookie offensive coordinator in Declan Doyle, and that the unit wasn't at full force with two of Lamar Jackson's top wide receivers injured. … The Ravens hurt themselves on Sunday, but they're still one of the better teams in the AFC."
Jeff Howe: "The Ravens' inconsistent start is reminiscent of issues with blown leads under the previous regime, ceding control of a winnable game while falling out of sorts in the second half. Jackson and the offense went three-and-out on back-to-back drives while the Saints orchestrated consecutive touchdowns. The Ravens should be in the playoff conversation throughout the season, but I'm curious to see if this team can distinguish itself from past incarnations."
ESPN’s Ben Solak expects the Ravens to get better as the season progresses and believes they will be postseason contenders. He also thinks that likening Sunday's loss to the Saints to past games in which the Ravens squandered leads is off base.
"The issue is that, though we might rush to cry 'same old Ravens' at this disappointing result, the game against the Saints isn't really the sort of tectonic collapse we've associated with the John Harbaugh Ravens," Solak wrote. "The Saints had the ball after halftime and were trailing by eight points, and never did the deficit become wider than that. New Orleans tied the score on a 2-point conversion with 9:42 remaining in the fourth; still a lot of game left.
"Compare that loss with the real Ravens' disaster classes. In Week 16 of last season, the Ravens led the Patriots 24-13 with 12:50 left then lost in regulation as Drake Maye guided two consecutive touchdown drives. In an unreal season opener in 2025, the Ravens led the Bills by 15 points with 11:42 left in the fourth before losing that game in regulation, too. That was the game in which Derrick Henry had a fourth-quarter fumble, something he never does, to put the Bills in position to pull within one score."
FOX Rules Analyst Explains Why Officials Got It Wrong on Saints' Game-Winning Touchdown
When the Ravens have lost heartbreakers in recent years, being on the wrong end of a disputed call seems to often be a significant factor.
It happened again on Sunday when Saints quarterback Tyler Shough's game-winning 1-yard plunge was called a touchdown on the field and wasn't overturned upon review even though it appeared the ball didn't break the plane of the goal line before Shough lost control of it.
FOX rules analyst Mike Pereira spoke with the league about the thought process that went into the ruling, and he concluded that it shouldn't have been called a touchdown.
"What intrigued me when I first saw it, is usually on these plunge plays like this, usually the signal is delayed from the official. The official really immediately signaled touchdown," Pereira said on the "Ryan Ripken Show.” "That indicated to me he saw the ball break the plane. But at his angle, and we look at every angle, and we look at every angle that you're basically looking at … if I was to bet all my money at the local fly fishing store, I would bet that he didn't make it.
"But here's the deal: They ruled that he did. So the angle that they looked at that you could actually see the ball, they said it was grainy, that they didn't have a real clear look. And then at one point the ball disappeared. So they didn't see it actually break the plane. But they couldn't prove that it didn't."
As far as Minter is concerned, whether it was a touchdown or not is irrelevant at this point.
"I am not going to sleep better if they come back and say, 'Well, we shouldn't have called that a touchdown.' So, it is what it is," he said.
Did Saints Show Blueprint for Slowing Ravens Offense?
The Ravens showed how potent their offense can be by putting up 41 points in Week 1, but they managed just 17 points – 14 of which came in the first half – against the Saints.
ESPN's Dan Orlovsky explained how the Saints defense was able to keep the Ravens offense in check.
"I think one of the things that started to show in this game that is going to be a theme for the Ravens to deal with, and all these teams [who are putting their quarterbacks under center] to deal with," Orlovsky said. "One of the counters that I saw New Orleans do defensively was [when the] quarterback goes under center, blitz the inside linebackers. [Kaden] Ellis and Pete Werner were just blitzing matches up the 'A' gaps, and I think that threw Baltimore off."
It will be interesting to see if other teams use a similar strategy against the Ravens. If so, Doyle and the Ravens undoubtedly will have a plan to counter it.
