Many Ravens fans arrived at M&T Bank Stadium Thursday night already braced for frustration, and plenty of them got exactly that. The Ravens fell to 4-5 after a 33-10 loss to Jacksonville that never felt close, and the mood around the stadium matched the scoreline.
Outside the Ravens Walk, Keon Fisher - known in the Ravens Flock as “TrippyKicka” - had plenty to say about the state of the team. He talked about Lamar Jackson’s injuries, Marlon Humphrey’s coverage and his podcast, a defense he believes has lost its claws, and an offensive line he said couldn’t block a slow-rolling shopping cart. He had plenty of complaints, but one thing never changed.
“When the players leave, I’m still out there waiting when they lose,” Fisher said. “I’m gonna still rep my team, but I’m gonna still let them know when they doing bad - ’cause I’m a supporter.”
That tension - between loyalty and outrage, between frustration and obligation - hung over the night. The weather didn’t help, and Jackson’s absence took even more juice out of the building. Secondary ticket markets were flooded with cheap seats before kickoff, and the crowd that did show up watched an offense produce only 55 net passing yards, the fewest by a Baltimore team in nine years.
The boos came early, starting with player introductions and growing louder by the second quarter as it became obvious the Ravens’ offense had nowhere to go. By the third quarter, with the rain getting heavier and the deficit growing, most of the 70,007 in attendance had headed for the exits. By the time Real Fan Dan tore off his shirt after a fourth-quarter garbage-time touchdown, nearly the entire upper bowl was empty.
The Ravens have not exactly been shy about their own feelings on fan behavior during this four-game losing streak. Marlon Humphrey took aim at fans on his podcast, saying Ravens fans are “ always freaking out.” Before that, defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver criticized the atmosphere during a second-half collapse against the Cincinnati Bengals, comparing it to a funeral.
“I think the collective energy of, not just our sideline, but our fans need to understand, ‘Hey, sometimes we need you to pump life into us too,’” Weaver said.
That didn’t sit well with everyone in the stands. Michelle Horning, who has held season tickets since M&T Bank Stadium opened in 1998, said Weaver’s comments felt like a shot.
“Pissed me off,” she said. “I know some fans left early, and maybe you gotta kick them in the butt.
But we never leave early. … We always support our Ravens.”
There’s an obvious back-and-forth here: are the fans failing the team, or is the team failing the fans? Right now, both sides seem to think the other is the problem.
The anger has only grown after a second straight season with Super Bowl expectations has gone sideways, especially with Jackson injured. For a franchise that has reached the playoffs in 12 of the past 18 seasons, four straight losses land hard.
Fisher sees the issue from the fan side. In his view, the crowd is being asked to keep giving when the product on the field isn’t giving much back.
“We’re doing our job, but they’re not doing their job.”
Samantha Pollino sees it differently. The Hampstead native and Broadway performer, who has sung the national anthem for the Ravens and is familiar to Orioles fans from the Colton Cowser “understudy” episode, said real fans stick around through the rough patches. She drew on her own experience as an understudy in a revival of “Chess,” where she covered for “Glee” star Lea Michele.
That made Thursday’s quarterback situation hit differently for her, with rookie Joe Fagnano stepping in for Jackson.
“I’ve had my fair share of people being disappointed to see me come on for the lead,” she said. “But it’s my job to shut out the noise and do a good job. I know that tickets can be really frickin’ expensive for a show, and you can absolutely be upset and heartbroken that the star isn’t on that night.
“But you don’t have to say ‘I’m not watching,’”
Pollino also pushed back on the wave of criticism aimed at the front office, coaches and healthy players. Tight end Mark Andrews has felt that edge especially hard over the last two years, ever since his 2-point conversion drop in Buffalo ended the Ravens’ 2024 playoff run. Andrews called the performance unacceptable and said he understands why fans are upset.
“They have every right to boo or do whatever they want to do,” Andrews said. “Obviously, us in here, we have to stay together, be on one accord, and just keep on relying on each other.”
Pollino’s view is that this is exactly when fandom matters most.
“How you show up matters even when the team is not winning,” she said. “I do believe that the fans have an obligation to step up in times like these.”
And even on a night when the building thinned out fast, there were still pockets of supporters who took that idea seriously. Keith and Joy Jackson got to the stadium as soon as the gates opened two hours before kickoff, both wearing jerseys - Lamar Jackson No. 8 and Derrick Henry No. 22 - and both already aware of Weaver’s call for the crowd to help lift the team.
They took it as a challenge.
“Just ’cause stuff don’t go our way, it ain’t no time to sit out,” Keith Jackson said. “That’s the time for us to get on our feet and make noise. And that’s what we’re gonna do.”
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