Baltimore Ravens: Worst loss in franchise history

The Baltimore Ravens just had the worst loss in franchise history:

The Baltimore Ravens just had the worst loss in franchise history, a point that isn’t even debatable. The Ravens were the number one seed. They had won 12 straight games. They had one of the best offensive attacks in the league and set a handful of records.

The Ravens were supposed to win the Super Bowl and they lost to a team that didn’t even throw for 100 yards. This is the worst playoff loss because even the most nervous fan couldn’t see this coming. Not like this.

The defense could not tackle, even when they had a play wrapped up in the backfield. They let Derrick Henry beat them. The Titans offense offered no surprises. They just stomped over the defense the same way the Cleveland Browns did in the fourth week of the season.

The offensive game plan made no sense. The Ravens got away from their style of football. Lamar Jackson had 59 passing attempts, played out of an empty set too much, and he turned the ball over three times. That’s not Ravens football. That’s not okay.

Other than Marquise Brown, most of the Ravens didn’t seem interested in catching the football. There were way too many dropped passes. This was a team loss and they could not even do the little things right.

If the Ravens won, they would have had an AFC Championship in Baltimore. The fans showed up. The city was covered in purple. There was a buzz in that stadium. A sold out crowd wanted to see something special. What they got was practically a no-show. The Ravens got hit hard and they folded under the pressure.

The most disappointing thing is how unprepared the team seemed. The Ravens had two weeks to prepare and John Harbaugh got out coached by Mike Vrabel every which way. The Titans got to play their game. The Ravens had the issue forced to them and they had no answers.

Does this mean that the best regular season the Ravens ever had is meaningless? No. Does this mean the Ravens won’t be good next year? No. What it means is that the Ravens are in the same exact spot they were in a year ago. All the “Lamar Jackson can’t” talk is going to start back up again. The offseason is going to feel like watching 100,000 jars of molasses drip empty, one at a time. The only cure the Ravens Flock has is more Ravens football, something that is basically eight months away.

At least when the Ravens lost to the New England Patriots in 2011, there was something good laced in all the pain. It felt like they would bounce back and win it all in 2012. They did. All the loss to the Titans did was plant the fear that this could easily happen again next year.

This is the worst loss the Ravens ever had. They just had to show up and play their game. They didn’t. There will be no AFC title game in Baltimore. That was a game a 14-2 team should have been won. That game was cruel to the heart. That game was unacceptable and unfathomably bad.