By Parth Rami, Quill Writer
As the 2025 NFL regular season came to a close on January 4th, there is one particular team to talk about: the Baltimore Ravens. Looking back on their season, they arguably had one of the toughest, wildest and most heartbreaking seasons in the history of the league.
Coming into the season, they were top contenders for Super Bowl LX, despite having one of, if not the, hardest schedule in the league. They played almost every single one of the top teams for the season: the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, Minnesota Vikings and the Green Bay Packers among others.
However, the team had also built a formidable offense and defense over the offseason. The team signed veteran players like wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and quarterback Cooper Rush, and drafted players such as edge rusher Mike Green, kicker Tyler Loop, and safety Malaki Starks. With their addition to the already-feared stars such as quarterback and 2-time MVP Lamar Jackson, running back Derrick Henry, linebacker Roquan Smith and safety Kyle Hamilton, the team had real potential to lift the Lombardi trophy in Super Bowl 60.
The season started off slow for the Ravens, but quickly turned into a nightmare nobody had seen coming. After starting 1-2 heading into Week 4 against the Kansas City Chiefs, fans were looking for a turnaround. Trailing 10-27 in the middle of the third quarter, star quarterback Lamar Jackson was sacked, and as a result, suffered a hamstring injury. He soon exited the game and was replaced by backup quarterback Cooper Rush. Unfortunately, Rush was not able to catch up with Kansas City, and the Ravens lost the game 20-37. That moment sparked the downfall for the team.
The Ravens went on to embarrassingly lose their next two games. Heading into Week 7, fans began to speculate their season was over before it even started, which easily said a lot. The team was 1-5 and going nowhere, sitting in the bottom of the AFC North.Their playoff and Super Bowl hopes seemed out of reach for good. Rumors began to spread that Head Coach John Harbaugh, who had been the head coach for the team for 18 seasons, was going to be fired.
However, behind the scenes, Harbaugh had a plan. The previous week, he had benched backup quarterback Cooper Rush and replaced him with 3rd-string quarterback Tyler Huntley late in the third quarter. Although he didn’t deliver what fans had been expecting in the game, he still performed much better than Rush.
Fans weren’t expecting much heading into Week 7 against the Chicago Bears. However, Harbaugh’s move to start Tyler Huntley proved to be magical. The Ravens ended up winning that game, their first victory in over a month. Things got even better as Jackson returned the following game, a convincing 28-6 win over the Miami Dolphins. The Ravens won against the Cleveland Browns, then the New York Jets. In all, the team ended up winning 7 of their next 10 games since starting Huntley in Week 7, clawing their way back into the playoff picture.
Despite the comeback, the team still faced big challenges ahead. Heading into the final few weeks of the season, the Ravens remained locked into a tight battle with fierce rival Pittsburgh Steelers. Both teams needed to outwin the other to secure a spot in the playoffs and the division title. The Ravens lost to the New England Patriots in Week 16, while the Steelers won their game. With Jackson getting injured in their previous game, their playoff hopes seemed to be slipping away. In a must-win game on the road against the Green Bay Packers, Huntley clutched up once again, securing a 41-24 victory. All that remained was for the Browns to beat the Steelers in their Week 17 matchup to set up a winner-take-all Week 18 showdown. Although the Steelers were heavy favorites to win, Cleveland managed to pull off the upset.
To put into perspective, only 4 teams in the history of the NFL have started 1-5 and made the playoffs. Despite the odds racking against them and with the division title and playoff spot on the line, the Ravens were still favorites to win with a nailbiter victory.
The Ravens got out to an early lead with a 38 yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Devontez Walker in the first quarter. Pittsburgh could only respond with a 57 yard field goal. Heading into halftime, Baltimore was up 10-3.
In the third quarter, Baltimore could not defend as PIttsburgh struck back with another field goal and rushing touchdown. As the quarter came to a close, Pittsburgh was up 13-10
Then came the wild 4th quarter. As Lamar was under pressure on a 3rd & 4 with just over 8 minutes left in the game, he suddenly broke free and fired a 50 yard touchdown to receiver Zay Flowers. Pittsburgh soon responded with a 2 yard rushing touchdown. Lamar struck back again with a 64 yard touchdown pass to Zay Flowers with just over 2 minutes left in the game. Many fans began to believe the game was over. Not quite, as Pittsburgh scored another touchdown with just under a minute left in the game.
With the game on the line, Lamar drove the offense down the field. After converting a 4th & 7 with a narrow pass to tight end Isaiah Likely, the Ravens made it into field goal range. With just a few seconds left, all the team had to do was make a 44 yard field goal, and the division title and playoff spot would be theirs, sealing their unlikely comeback season.
As kicker Tyler Loop lined up and got into position, the crowd held their breath. This was the end, the play that would determine who goes to the playoffs, and who goes home.
As snap came, the placeholder positioned the ball, and Loop kicked it. As the crowd watched it sail through the air, it suddenly drifted to the right, just outside the right post.
The crowd suddenly exploded in cheers as Ravens fans and players stood, stunned. As the players walked back to the locker room, fans stayed and watched as the Steelers celebrated their win, what could have been theirs.
Just a few days after the heartbreaking loss, it was announced that head coach John Harbaugh, who had been coaching for 18 seasons, was fired.
In the end, despite the incredible comeback, the Ravens simply could not deliver in the final game. Looking towards the offseason, the team will most likely sign and draft even more rising stars and veterans to strengthen their team for next year. Although they did not get a chance to compete in Super Bowl 60, they still have it in their sights for next year.