The Ravens started 0–2 for the first time since 2015, but went 12–3 the rest of the way to finish the season 12–5. With Lamar Jackson's five touchdown performance in the Ravens win in Week 7, the Ravens became the first team in NFL history with players winning Offensive Player of the Week in four consecutive weeks (Derrick Henry won the honor in week 4 and 6 while Lamar Jackson won the honor for week 5 and 7).[3] Following a Week 16 victory against the AFC North rivalPittsburgh Steelers, the Ravens clinched a playoff spot for the third consecutive season and their sixth in seven years.[4] In Week 18, they won the AFC North title for the second year in a row with a win over the Cleveland Browns.[5] The Ravens finished the regular season accumulating 7224 total offensive yards, the most in franchise history. The Ravens would also become the first team in NFL history to have 4000 passing yards and 3000 rushing yards in the same regular season.[6]
The Ravens opened up their postseason run with a 28–14 win over the Steelers in the Wild Card Round to advance to the Divisional Round, where they will travel to face Buffalo Bills, who defeated the Denver Broncos in their Wild Card matchup.
^ abcBaltimore traded OTMorgan Moses and a 2024 fourth-round selection (134th overall) to the New York Jets for a 2024 fourth-round selection (112th overall) and a 2024 sixth-round selection (218th overall).[8]
^Baltimore traded a 2024 sixth-round selection to the Cleveland Browns for a 2023 seventh-round selection.[9]
Following several mistakes in the 2nd quarter, including a fumble, turnover on downs, a missed field goal, as well as multiple illegal formation penalties, the Ravens fell behind 13–10 to the Chiefs at halftime.[28] After getting the ball down 27–20, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens marched to the Chiefs 10-yard line, but on the final play of the game, while initially ruled a touchdown, a replay revealed Isaiah Likely's toe was out of bounds, thus giving the Chiefs the victory.[29]
The Ravens blew two 10-point leads and were upset by the Raiders 26–23. It was the second consecutive season that the Ravens were upset by Gardner Minshew-led teams and dropped their record to 0–2 for the first time since 2015.
The Ravens raced out to a 28–6 3rd quarter lead behind two rushing touchdowns by Derrick Henry, a rushing touchdown by Lamar Jackson, and a receiving touchdown by Rashod Bateman. After a missed field goal by Justin Tucker in the fourth quarter, the Cowboys scored 19 unanswered points to close the gap to 28–25, but the Ravens were able to run out the final 2:53 to preserve their first victory of the season.
Derrick Henry had an 87-yard touchdown run on the Ravens’ first offensive play en route to a 35–10 rout of the previously 3–0 Buffalo Bills. Henry finished with 199 rushing yards and the aforementioned touchdown while also having 3 receptions for 10 yards and a touchdown. His performance won him the AFC Offensive Player of the Week award. With the win, the Ravens got back to .500 at 2–2.
In a shootout overtime thriller, the Ravens overcame three 2nd half 10-point deficits to outlast the Bengals 41–38. Lamar Jackson accounted for 403 yards and four passing touchdowns and was named AFC offensive player of the week for his performance. Justin Tucker tied the game at 38-all with less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter with a 56-yard field goal after Marlon Humphrey intercepted Joe Burrow on the previous drive. The Bengals had a chance to win in overtime after a fumble by Jackson, but Evan McPherson missed a 53-yard field goal. Derrick Henry, who had 92 yards rushing and a touchdown in the game, then had a 51-yard rush to the Bengals 6-yard line and Tucker kicked a 24-yard field goal to win the game for the Ravens. The victory improved the Ravens record to 3–2.
Week 6: Baltimore Ravens 30, Washington Commanders 23
In an unexpected marquee game of the week, Lamar Jackson outdueled Jayden Daniels with the help of Derrick Henry, who was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week, as the Ravens defeated the Commanders 30–23 to improve to 4–2. Jackson and Henry accounted for 495 total yards and three touchdowns as the Ravens scored on five consecutive drives (3 TDs and 2 FGs) before running out the final 2:48 to end the game. Zay Flowers also had career day with 9 receptions for 132 yards in just the first half (he was not targeted in the 2nd half). With this win over the Commanders, the Ravens set an NFL record as the first team to post six straight games with at least 150 yards and one touchdown through the air and one on the ground.[30] The win also moved Lamar Jackson to 22-1 vs NFC teams, a mark that stands as the best by a quarterback versus an opposing conference in NFL history.[31]
Week 7: Baltimore Ravens 41, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31
Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield looked sharp and the Ravens defense seemed to have no answer as the Bucs dominated the 1st quarter taking the early 10–0 lead. However, the next two quarters belonged to the Ravens as they scored 34 unanswered points with Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, who was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week, tossing four touchdowns and the Ravens defense stiffened with two interceptions by CB Marlon Humphrey, although Humphrey was forced out of the game with a knee injury on his second interception.[32] Jackson added another touchdown pass in the 4th quarter to Derrick Henry, who also rushed for 169 yards in the game, to open up a 41–18 lead with 6:32 remaining. The Bucs tried to make a furious rally in garbage time, but the deficit was too much to overcome as the Ravens won 41–31. With the win, the Ravens improved to 5–2.
Despite being heavy favorites, the Ravens struggled and were ultimately stunned by the Browns 24–29. The Ravens offense was inconsistent throughout the game and had at least three drops. Meanwhile, the Ravens defense, who were missing multiple key starters, was repeatedly gashed by Jameis Winston and also dropped several potential interceptions. They also were unable to close out the game. Despite struggling and trailing for most of the game, the Ravens were able to take a 24–23 lead on a Derrick Henry touchdown run with 2:36 left in regulation. The Browns then drove into Baltimore territory, but with 1:04 left in the game, Winston overthrew Elijah Moore on a deep ball that went straight to Kyle Hamilton. However, Hamilton dropped it and Winston threw a go-ahead 38-yard touchdown pass to Cedric Tillman on the very next play. Baltimore tried to rally back, but turned the ball over on downs at the Cleveland 24-yard line as time expired.[33][34][35][36] The loss snapped the Ravens five-game winning streak, dropping their record to 5–3.
QB Lamar Jackson recorded his 4th career perfect-passer rating, tying him for the most all time, in a 41–10 blowout against the number 3 defense in the league. With the win, the Ravens improved to 6–3.
The Ravens swept the Bengals for the second year in a row with a 35–34 win. With the win, the Ravens improved to 7–3. QB Lamar Jackson had the best fourth quarter performance of his career, throwing for 197 yards, three touchdowns, and a perfect passer rating in the final quarter as he rallied the Ravens from a 14-point deficit. He also became the only player in NFL history with five touchdown passes and no interceptions in the fourth quarter against an opponent in a single season. [37]
The Ravens clinched a playoff berth and snapped a four-game losing streak to the Steelers with a 34–17 home win. Lamar Jackson threw for 207 yards, 3 touchdowns, and an interception while also rushing for 22 yards. Derrick Henry had 189 scrimmage yards with 162 of them coming on the ground. The defense also forced two crucial turnovers. The first one came early in the second quarter with the game tied at 7 when Ar'Darius Washington forced a Russell Wilson fumble after the latter had scrambled 19 yards to the Baltimore 4 yard line. The fumble was recovered by Kyle Van Noy and the Ravens drove 96 yards and scored a touchdown to take a 14–7 lead. The second turnover came after Jackson had thrown a red zone interception early in the fourth quarter with the Ravens up 24–17. After being pressured by David Ojabo, Wilson threw a pass that was behind his intended receiver MyCole Pruitt. The pass was intercepted and returned 37 yards for a touchdown by Marlon Humphrey, allowing the Ravens to extend their lead to 31–17. After forcing a Steeler punt, the Ravens drove 86 yards in 11 plays while running 6:09 of the remaining 9:19 off the clock. The drive ended in a field goal, essentially icing the game. With the win, the Ravens improved to 10–5 and entered a first place tie with the Steelers atop the AFC North; the Steelers had the tiebreaker based on conference record and would’ve clinched the division had they won this game.
Assisted by Pittsburgh's loss to Kansas City earlier that day, the Ravens took control of the AFC North with a 31–2 road rout of the Texans. The Ravens defense pitched a shutout while the Houston defense had no answers for Baltimore’s run game. Lamar Jackson had 168 yards passing and two touchdowns while adding 87 yards rushing and another touchdown. Jackson also broke Michael Vick’s record for the most rushing yards by a quarterback in NFL history. Derrick Henry had 165 scrimmage yards and a rushing touchdown as the Ravens finished with more rushing yards (251) than the Texans had total yards of offense (211). Houston's only score came on a safety when Kamari Lassiter tackled Henry in the end zone for a four yard loss in the second quarter to make it 10–2. However, the Texans turned the ball over on downs at the Baltimore 1-yard line on their next drive and the Ravens drove 99 yards for a touchdown on the ensuing drive. The Texans would reach the redzone only one other time on a late third quarter drive that also ended in a turnover on downs. With the win, the Ravens improved to 11–5.
Derrick Henry broke the Ravens' record for most rushing touchdowns in a single season as the Ravens trounced the Browns 35–10 to clinch the AFC North and the AFC's No. 3 seed despite losing pro bowler Zay Flowers to injury. Henry rushed for 165 yards and two touchdowns (both in the fourth quarter) to finish the season with 16 rushing touchdowns. The previous record was 15 by Jamal Lewis.[38] The Ravens defense also recorded two interceptions off of Bailey Zappe: the first one was a pick-6 midway through the first quarter when Nate Wiggins returned an interception 26 yards for a touchdown to give the Ravens a 7–0 lead. The second one came with 2:25 left to go in the fourth quarter when Michael Pierce intercepted a pass at the Baltimore 16-yard line and returned it the Baltimore 22-yard line before sliding down. At 355 pounds, Pierce became the heaviest NFL player to record an interception since at least 2000.[39] With the win, the Ravens finished the season at 12–5.
This was the fifth playoff meeting between the Steelers and the Ravens. The Steelers lead 3–1 all time in playoff meetings against the Ravens heading into this game, all of which were previously played in Pittsburgh. Their most recent playoff meeting came in the 2014 AFC Wild Card, where the Ravens defeated the Steelers 30–17. In the regular season, the Ravens and Steelers split the series, with the Steelers winning 18–16 in Pittsburgh during Week 11, and the Ravens winning 34–17 in Baltimore during Week 16.
Week 4: AFC Offensive Player of the Week[42] Week 4: FedEx Ground Player of the Week[43] Week 6: AFC Offensive Player of the Week[44] Week 10: NFLPA Community MVP[45]
Week 5: AFC Offensive Player of the Week[46] Week 7: AFC Offensive Player of the Week[47] Week 10: AFC Offensive Player of the Week[48] October: AFC Offensive Player of the Month[49]
