The Ravens walked into Week 2 hoping to build on their home opener and walk out with a 2-0 start. Instead, they’re spending the week sorting through a 24-17 loss to the Saints and the kind of game that leaves a team with more questions than comfort.
That’s the harsh part of an NFL loss like this: it strips away the noise and leaves the important stuff behind. Baltimore found some encouraging signs in the defeat, but it also ran straight into a few truths that are getting harder to ignore as Week 3 approaches.
The biggest one is this: the Ravens need Zay Flowers more than they’d probably like to say out loud.
That’s not a knock on Rashod Bateman or the rest of the receiving group. Bateman did his part with seven catches for 88 yards and a touchdown.
Devontez Walker added a 47-yard grab, and Chris Moore and LaJohntay Wester both had moments. Baltimore got enough from the supporting cast to show the receiver room isn’t nearly as bare as some feared.
Still, Flowers’ absence was obvious. The Ravens can get through a game without him, and Sunday showed that.
What they can’t easily replace is the way he changes the way defenses play. His speed, burst, and yards-after-catch ability force opponents to think differently about the whole offense.
Baltimore moved the ball at times without him, but it looked less dangerous doing it.
Bateman, though, gave the Ravens something else to hold onto.
For years, he’s often been talked about as the guy next to somebody else, a useful piece in a bigger passing picture. Against New Orleans, he looked like more than that.
He led Baltimore in targets, catches, receiving yards, and touchdown receptions. Even more telling, he handled the larger role with a comfort that stood out when the offense needed him most.
If the Ravens were looking for someone to help absorb the blow of Flowers’ absence, they may have found a reminder of how important Bateman can be when the ball comes his way.
The other problem is one Baltimore knows too well: the fourth quarter.
At some point, the conversation has to stop being about who’s calling plays or which names are on the roster. The Ravens have been chasing answers in late-game situations for years, and the same issue keeps showing up.
Different coaches. Different players.
Same stretch of football.
Against the Saints, Baltimore entered the fourth quarter with the lead and a chance to finish the job. Instead, New Orleans took control of the most important period, outscoring the Ravens 15-0 and finding a response every time it needed one.
Nobody can pin every fourth-quarter failure on one cause. But the pattern keeps repeating, and until Baltimore starts closing games the way good teams do, that storyline isn’t going anywhere.
There’s also the home-field piece, which didn’t fail because of effort from the crowd. M&T Bank Stadium had the energy.
The fans showed up. The atmosphere was there from the start.
But home-field advantage in the NFL isn’t something you just talk into existence. It comes when a team turns that energy into results, when the building becomes a place opponents hate to play because the home team keeps making them feel it.
The Ravens had the crowd behind them. They just didn’t finish the game in a way that matched it.
One loss doesn’t define anything by itself, and it doesn’t erase what Baltimore did in Week 1. But Sunday did sharpen the picture.
The Ravens are better with Flowers on the field. The fourth quarter is still a problem until they prove otherwise.
And as strong as the fan base is, home-field advantage still has to be earned.
In Other News...
Saints Lose First Tyler Shough-Jaxson Dart Test For One Frustrating Reason
The Saints were already preparing for a young quarterback challenge this week, but the matchup shifted when Jaxson Dart went down with a knee injury against the Rams. What had initially looked like an MCL sprain turned out to be more extensive after an MRI, and the Giants now appear headed toward a long absence for their rookie signal-caller.
For New Orleans, that means the first Tyler Shough-Jaxson Dart test will not happen after all, at least not in the form many expected. Dart is out for the upcoming game, and Jameis Winston is expected to start in his place, leaving the Saints to adjust to a different kind of opponent and a frustratingly altered version of the weeks quarterback storyline. [Read more 🡒]
Saints Already Made A Tough Call In Their Backfield Battle
Audric Estimes Saints stint hit a hard stop before he ever got the chance to settle into the backfield rotation. New Orleans waived the running back from injured reserve with an injury settlement after the thigh injury sidelined him, a move that both compensates him for time missed and clears the way for him to look for another landing spot once he is healthy.
For the Saints, it is another sign of how quickly the backfield picture has shifted around the injured list and the players who stayed available. Estime had been in the mix for playing time, but while he worked his way through recovery, others moved up the depth chart and carved out roles, leaving New Orleans to make a difficult roster decision with the season plan already taking shape. [Read more 🡒]
Drew Brees Just Reframed That Strange Broncos Comeback Story
The odd little Broncos comeback idea got a lot clearer when Drew Brees addressed it on SiriusXMs Lets Go podcast. Brees said he was the one who reached out to former Broncos assistants Pete Carmichael and Joe Lombardi about the possibility of playing for Denver in the 2025 AFC Championship game, which is the kind of late-career twist that instantly gets attention around the league and in Saints circles alike.
Brees said he seriously considered the comeback, but his old injuries kept him from being able to follow through. The NFL has not commented on the matter, and nothing further came from the conversation, leaving the whole episode as one of those strange what-if stories that briefly surfaced, then slipped back into the background. [Read more 🡒]