While it might not carry the same excitement as a big-name free agent signing or a contract extension for your favorite player, a team’s schedule can reveal a lot about how difficult their path to the playoffs might be. Strength of schedule may seem like a minor detail, but when you’re chasing a Super Bowl, every detail matters. Even something as simple as having a bye week at the right time can significantly impact a team’s chances for success. With that in mind, today we’re breaking down the Baltimore Ravens’ schedule and highlighting — in no particular order — the five biggest takeaways as we head into the NFL preseason later this month.
#1: The Schedule is Harder than it Looks on Paper
When measuring the cumulative record of their 2024 opponents, the Baltimore Ravens’ opponents went 154-135 last season — a .533 win percentage overall. Although this is slightly lower than the .536 win percentage the Ravens’ opponents had during last year’s schedule, when actually looking at the Ravens’ schedule, the Ravens seem to be in for a tougher run this year. Unlike their schedule last year, which had the Ravens go against genuinely bad teams like the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders, the Ravens don’t get that luxury again this year. Even the teams with past losing records they are set to go against this year, like the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots, both look much improved and, at the least, are going to be tough to win against. Having such a high floor to their opponent quality will require the Ravens to consistently play efficient football in order to win games.
#2: The First 6 Weeks are Very Important
The first six weeks of the season, the Ravens play the Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, Houston Texans, and Los Angeles Rams. Five out of those six teams made it past the wild card round last year and had an average win percentage of .741 — excluding the Browns, of course. Last year, the Ravens got off to a slow start. Through the first six games, Lamar had just a 5:3 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a passer rating of 93.0, according to Stat Muse. The defense was also one of the most inconsistent in the league, notably dropping the ball against the Raiders early in the season. Against a much harder start to the schedule, the Ravens cannot afford to start the season slow again. The Ravens will need to come out of the gate fast, or they risk falling behind the pack early.
#3: The Ravens have a Good Bye Week
One of the positives of the Ravens’ schedule this year is their bye week. Unlike the past couple of years, where the Ravens have been stuck with very late bye weeks, the Ravens’ bye week this year lands right on Week Seven. Conveniently for the Ravens, Week Seven comes after the toughest stretch in the schedule for them. This will allow the Ravens a true midseason reset after that first tough stretch of games. This should allow them to make a solid push during the second half of their season and “should” help prevent injuries.
#4: The Easiest Leg of the Schedule Comes Right After the Bye
Coming out of the week seven bye, the Ravens play the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns, and New York Jets. Outside of the Vikings, this is the easiest stretch of games the Ravens will have all season. Making sure the Ravens come out of this stretch with as few losses as possible will be important if the team wants to keep a high seed going into the playoffs.
#5: The Last 5 Weeks of the Schedule could be Dangerous
Looking at the back half of the Ravens’ schedule, the last four out of six matchups are divisional games, with two against both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals. AFC North games are always messy, and you can usually pencil the Ravens to lose at least one game to the Steelers every year. Especially after the Zay Flowers injury before the playoffs last year, I’ve become extremely paranoid about playing divisional round games so late in the season. Although it’s important for every team to win games, I think this makes it even more important for the Ravens to win early and hopefully be able to sit out the final week of the season and avoid unnecessary injuries.
Conclusion
Looking at the schedule as a whole, the Ravens definitely don’t have an easy path to the playoffs. Right out of the gate, they’ll have to confront a familiar challenge in week one against the Bills. That matchup kicks off a tough five-game stretch, followed by a series of clashes with rising teams and a grueling run of physical NFC North opponents. To make it through this gauntlet and remain contenders, the Ravens will need to prove they truly are one of the most talented rosters in the league.
