Sep 5, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) runs the ball against the Baltimore Ravens during the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Ravens Outmatched By Recurring Rival in Contender Tiers

Originally posted on Baltimore Ravens on SI
By Henry Brown | Last updated Aug 29, 2025 9:00 AM ET

The Baltimore Ravens are set to enter next week's regular season debut with more hype than almost any other team, boasting a roster bursting at the seams with riches that looks to fully capitalize on 2025's championship hunt.

Their lineup is universally regarded as one of the best that any NFL team has to offer between their stars manning the headlines and the near-limitless depth the front office has accumulated at multiple key positions, but not everyone is sold by their on-paper potential translating into playoff success. That's where the Ravens have fallen short throughout the 2020s, as other quarterbacks surrounded by less talent than Lamar Jackson have gotten the better of the 2x MVP when it's mattered most.

Analysts still consider the Kansas City Chiefs the team to beat, even with their roster sustaining several tough blows in recent years. But nothing seems to faze Patrick Mahomes, who continues to run the AFC with seven consecutive trips to the conference championship game.

When CBS Sports ran through AFC's contender tiers, the Chiefs led the field with a bullet, earning distinction in "a league of their own."

"No matter how unstable the Chiefs may look at times, their 17 consecutive wins in one-score games (including the playoffs) is the longest streak of all-time, they seem to always find a way," Garrett Podell wrote. "That's why they remain at a level of their own entering the 2025 season."

The Ravens have yet to prove they can hang with Mahomes' Chiefs in the playoffs, especially after the perennial favorites sent Baltimore spiraling to end their 2023 season after their first playoff matchup ended like most Chiefs games do. The Ravens, much like the Buffalo Bills, have been held to the second-highest tier where the teams who can't get through Kansas City are stuffed.

"The Baltimore Ravens are in a similar boat [to the Bills] with the most regular season wins in a seven-season span (78) without a Super Bowl trip all-time, per CBS Sports Research," Podell wrote.

"Their starting backfield dynamic duo of 2024 first team All-Pro quarterback Lamar Jackson and 2024 second team All-Pro running back Derrick Henry powered the 2024 Ravens to becoming the first team in NFL history with over 40 passing touchdowns and 20 rushing touchdowns in a single season. Both the Bills and Ravens are breathing down the Chiefs' neck."

Most on-field statistics favor the Ravens as one of the likeliest teams to lay waste to the rest of the NFL this fall, but Jackson's 3-5 playoff record will continue haunting the team until they can prove that they can prevail above history and their foils. The Ravens will get a chance to deal with their rival Bills in Week 1, with the Chiefs waiting for later in the regular season.

This article first appeared on Baltimore Ravens on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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