The Baltimore Ravens fell flat in Week Four. There’s no other way to put it, as they got pummeled by the Kansas City Chiefs 37-20. It was not a pretty watch, and here were my takeaways from that game.
The Ravens, whenever they face the Chiefs, just look horrid offensively. Steve Spagnuolo, the defensive coordinator, deserves a lot of credit for how he game plans for Lamar Jackson. In his seven career games against Kansas City, he has a 1-6 record and thrown for six passing touchdowns, three interceptions, with a rating of 80.4.
Jackson can’t seem to figure it out. When looking back on the game logs, his best games against the Chiefs are his earlier ones. So that tells me that Kansas City is at a point where they have nearly figured out how to play against Jackson, and he has not been able to make the necessary adjustments.
In the Ravens’ last three games against the Chiefs, their point totals are 10, 20, and 20. Normally, they average north of 30 points year after year. This year, Baltimore has been averaging 37 points per game in the first three.
Another thing, though, that has been a catalyst for the Ravens’ offensive struggles in this rivalry is their own doing. For some odd reason, they refuse to run the ball when facing Kansas City. In the 2023 season, Baltimore averaged 156.6 yards per game on the ground, which was ranked number one.
When facing the Chiefs in the AFC Championship that year, they ran the ball just 16 times. 16!! Then, later that offseason, they got Derrick Henry and were set to face Kansas City to open up the 2024 season. In that game, they ran the ball 32 times for 185 yards.
They lost that game 27-20, but they were so close in the end, and had Isaiah Likely stayed in bounds, the game could have ended differently. So you’d think that the Ravens would look at old film and understand that their key to success in this particular matchup is to lean on their strength and not make Jackson go throw for throw with Patrick Mahomes, right?
In fact, in the one game the Ravens won in this rivalry, they ran for 251 yards. The key to victory is the run, and they seem never to grasp that. On Sunday, a similar act of foolishness was done.
Derrick Henry, one of the all-time greatest running backs, carried the ball eight times. In those eight carries, he had 42 yards, which is a 5.2 yards per carry average, which is very good. Why didn’t the Ravens give it to him more?
I don’t know, and as long as Baltimore continues to do this game after game against Kansas City, they will never get over the hump.
Baltimore’s defense has major issues. Granted, they have a lot of injuries, but so do the Chiefs on offense, and Kansas City looked like their 2018-2022 counterparts. In 2025, their defense has put up awful numbers.
The Ravens’ defense ranks 29th in yards allowed per game, the 32nd-ranked rush defense, and has the second-fewest sacks in the league. So not only do they not stop the run, but they can’t get after the quarterback.
That is a recipe for disaster. It is damn near impossible for a team to overcome that, especially when one side of the ball is getting manhandled in the trenches. The Ravens, historically, are known for their toughness and staunch defense, and all of a sudden, that feels like a distant memory.
Last year, the Ravens’ defense wasn’t great either. For most of the year, they were ranked last against the pass but first against the run. Usually, when a team is last in passing, a few adjustments can be made in terms of where players can be placed.
That’s exactly what Baltimore did last year. They benched Marcus Williams and moved Kyle Hamilton to safety, and their defense played much better to close out last season. Their fans hoped that momentum would carry over this year.
Not only did the momentum not carry over, but it got worse. As mentioned earlier, the rush defense is now dead last after being ranked one of the best last year. Problems within the trenches are more of a personnel issue, so moving pieces around won’t fix things like it did for the pass defense.
The bigger story, honestly, might be that the Ravens really miss Mike McDonald. In his final season as the Baltimore defensive coordinator, the Ravens were regarded as one of the best defenses in the league. Once he became a head coach in Seattle in 2024, the defense has been spotty and inconsistent.
Baltimore has a lot of issues to address. With Lamar Jackson looking like he is going to miss time with a hamstring injury, their season might be over. They need him badly because that defense is not going to win them any games.
Beyond this season, though, where do they go from here? It’s been seven years of facing the Chiefs and seven years of losing to them. Something has to change. But what?
Should they move on from John Harbaugh? Should they pursue another defensive coordinator? There’s a lot to address, and I’m not sure they know where to begin.
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