A winning start for Baltimore.
The Baltimore Ravens got their preseason under way with a controlled 24-16 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
Baltimore has always been a strong preseason team, with a 24-game win streak that ended in 2023.
This year, though, preseason could be more important than it has been in recent years.
Do not repeat 2024
The Ravens started last season 0-2. Crucially, this included losing the tiebreaker to the Kansas City Chiefs, as well as slipping on a costly banana skin at home to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Admittedly, they did recover to win in Week 3, against the eventual second seed Buffalo Bills. The team eventually ended the year 13-4.
Effectively, the Ravens were locked in as a lower seed in the AFC playoffs before we hit October. They ended up losing in the Divisional Round on the road in Buffalo.
Baltimore would have had to go on the road to Arrowhead in the Championship Game had they won.
With harsh lessons learnt last season, the pressure is on to avoid a repeat in 2025.
Hitting the ground running
The Ravens certainly have a tricky first month to the season.
Week 1: @ Bills
Week 2: Browns
Week 3: Detroit
Week 4: @ Chiefs
With the exception of the Cleveland Browns, there are three teams with Super Bowl aspirations in 2025.
But the Browns game is equally important to avoid a repeat of the Week 2 defeat to the Raiders in 2024.
Avoiding a 1-3 start must be the priority for the Ravens’ longer-term goals. That starts in the preseason and making sure that the team is as ready as possible to travel to Buffalo for Sunday Night Football.
Alongside that, Baltimore must have the starters locked down.
Preseason decisions
The major debate will be at guard, ensuring Andrew Vorhees or Ben Cleveland is ready to go, with a strong relationship with Ronnie Stanley and Tyler Linderbaum.
That is particularly important with the Ravens down a tight end in Isiah Likely to start the season.
Beyond that, the coaches and players must make sure that rookie kicker Tyler Loop is comfortable and can be relied on to win a game. Last season, they could not completely rely on Justin Tucker.
The most significant moment of the win over the Colts was the loss of Bilhal Kone for the season to injury. Kone was a good option for a depth at cornerback but may open up a roster spot elsewhere.
The final part is making sure that other rookies who will get playing time are up to speed. The main callouts here are Malaki Starks at safety and Mike Green as an edge rusher, as well as the potential of Aeneas Peebles on the defensive line.
The Ravens will not be fully cooked for Week 1 and they will not be able to sustain that anyway.
With a tough schedule to start and end the season in a competitive division, the Ravens need to maximise their results each week.
That starts by being ready to go in Week 1.
