Roundtable Reactions: Ravens miss playoffs with loss to Steelers

The Baltimore Ravens lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in heartbreaking fashion on Sunday night with rookie kicker Tyler Loop pushing a would-be game-winning field goal wide right. Here are the instant reactions from Baltimore Beatdown’s staff:

For anyone reading this who is shellshocked right now: me, too. You could spend an hour listing potential endings to the Ravens’ season and you wouldn’t get to this one. A ridiculous back-and-forth in the fourth quarter with not one, not two, but three miraculous plays by the Ravens offense put them in position to win. But just like the rest of their season, it didn’t go to plan. Loop, in the biggest moment of his life, went wide right, and the Ravens are going home. It’s time for some tough questions in Baltimore. – Nikhil Mehta

I don’t know what to say other than this team got what it deserved in the end. This was a team that entered the season as Super Bowl favorites but never seemed to recover after falling flat on their faces with an embarrassing blown lead against the Bills in Week 1. What were clear weaknesses entering last offseason (pass rush and offensive line) were not properly addressed and remained costly weaknesses throughout the season. It is hard to imagine bringing back John Harbaugh and this coaching staff at this point, but I will not be surprised if there is minimal change this offseason, although I fully believe it is time to try something new. The Ravens will enter the offseason needing to reach a new deal with Lamar Jackson in order to have the cap space needed to properly address the holes on this team while also having a long list of important players set to hit free agency. This offseason is setting up to be a pivotal one in franchise history. – Mark Myers

Despite the best efforts from the referees, the Ravens have looked like the far superior team. You knew going into this game it would be a close one, it was just a matter of how it would transpire. The Ravens ran the ball effectively but still looked out of sorts in obvious passing situations. In the second half, Monken needs to run the ball and get Jackson in a rhythm with the short passing game. Pittsburgh’s offense is not good without D.K. Metcalf. Zach Orr needs to focus the attention on the Steelers running backs and tight ends. I except a heavy dose of Henry in the second half, but for Baltimore to win, they will need to avoid the dreaded turnover. – Dustin Cox

A season that began with heart break ends the same way for Baltimore. Calling this season an underachievement is an understatement. Lamar Jackson and the Ravens fought and clawed their way through this one, making a number of big plays. Unfortunately, the Ravens haven’t played complementary football all year and just as their offense started humming, their defense collapsed. At the end of the day, it should have never come to needing your rookie kicker to get you into the playoffs. A team with Super Bowl aspirations finishes 8-9, with a lot of expected change coming this offseason. – Stephen Bopst

At the end of the day, this team ended where they should. Below .500 and out of the playoffs. All season long, it was a bottom five offensive line, an inconsistent offense, and terribly coached unit. It was a defense with no teeth, no pass rush, and an inability to make the one play needed in important games. Despite starting the season as maybe the number one Super Bowl favorite, this team was never even good much less a playoff or championship caliber group.

Now we head to one of the most pivotal offseasons in franchise history. Will John Harbaugh stay or go? Will Lamar Jackson be extended or traded? Can the Ravens somehow reset the roster despite numerous holes? It’s going to be a long, dramatic offseason with many headliners about nothing until the Jackson situation is resolved. For now we should likely know about Harbaugh in the next 48 hours. Onto 2026. – Zach Canter