The Baltimore Ravens put on a clinic in their preseason opener. It was a masterful performance put on by the team now led by Jesse Minter, as the offense found a rhythm through the air and the defense was an immovable object. It was honestly hard to pick out any negatives.
However, there is one crack in the armor that could come back to bite the Ravens in 2026: special teams.
Kicker Tyler Loop had himself an uneven performance on Saturday night—something that everyone was hoping he’d avoid. It wasn’t just him, though. Rookie punter Ryan Eckley was hot-and-cold on his two punts, and he may need to iron out the kinks as a holder for Loop.
If Baltimore doesn’t figure this out, it could become their Achilles’ heel.
Baltimore Ravens may have a growing special teams issue
Tyler Loop went 1-for-2 against the Philadelphia Eagles, missing a 49-yarder on his first kick of the new year, but rebounding well with a 42-yarder later on. On the bright side, he made all three extra points and took steps in the right direction on kickoffs.
Ryan Eckley saw a similar up-and-down performance, as the first punt of the Michigan State product’s NFL career went for a whopping…27 yards. Safe to say he shanked that one. Fortunately, the next time he took the field, he turned things around with a terrific 40-yard punt that pinned the Eagles at their own 10-yard line.
While those results are questionable, there’s no reason to panic yet. The growing pains on special teams were bound to come after losing Jordan Stout to the New York Giants in free agency. Having new punter/holder and still a young kicker is a combination that’s going to take time to find its footing.
Luckily, Baltimore does have history on its side. There have been very few Ravens teams that have been poor on special teams, and senior special teams coach Randy Brown is one of the best kicking minds in the league. He’s seen a ton of success going into his 18th season (most notably from Justin Tucker and Sam Koch), and fans should have a ton of faith in him molding Loop and Eckley into a strong duo.
It’s not like the two young kickers have been struggling this offseason either. If anything, they were actually on fire ahead of that preseason matchup against Philadelphia.
Loop was rolling through training camp ready to prove he’s the kicker of the future. He was 33-for-35 and was also showing off a booming leg, hitting all of his kicks from 50-plus yards away. The preseason opener was a slight blip on the radar, but the team should have plenty of hope that he can bounce back.
In Eckley’s case, he’s a rookie. That first punt under the stadium lights can be tough, and the pressure clearly got to him. This offseason has been awesome, though, as his powerful leg has been on full display and his placement has proved just as good.
Still, Loop and Eckley’s 2026 debuts left more to be desired. It adds another layer of intrigue as the team heads into its Week 2 preseason bout against the Minnesota Vikings. They must step up from here on out.
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