With less than five minutes remaining in what looked like a guaranteed road victory in Buffalo, the Baltimore Ravens fell apart. Head Coach John Harbaugh resorted to conservative play calling, a familiar story for a coach who has now blown 17 double-digit second-half leads. Derrick Henry’s fumble with under three minutes left swung momentum completely, and the final nail was a complete meltdown by Zach Orr’s defense.
It was the same unit that finished last season hot, bolstered in the offseason with Jaire Alexander, Chidobe Awuzie, and rookies Malaki Starks and Mike Green. Expectations were sky-high. What the Ravens put on the field in Week 1 was a disaster.
The @Ravens are the first team in NFL history to score 40+ points and rush for 235+ yards in a loss (teams were previously 277-0 including playoffs) pic.twitter.com/a9VZ4OKp6R
— NFL+ (@NFLPlus) September 8, 2025
Zach Orr's defense seeking redemption entering Ravens' Week 2 matchup
Orr’s scheme gave Josh Allen everything he wanted. The defense leaned on Cover-6 looks, playing soft leverage outside while safeties sat deep. That created open windows on outs and corners repeatedly. Allen went 33 of 46 for 394 yards with two passing touchdowns, and his confidence only grew as the game wore on. With no reroutes at the line, timing routes were untouched.
When Baltimore tried to mix pressure, they mugged the A gaps, then dropped out, showing blitz without ever threatening protection. That “phantom pressure” meant Allen rarely had to reset his feet, and with one sack and three quarterback hits across sixty minutes, the pass rush was a non-factor.
Individual breakdowns were just as glaring. Alexander was flagged for a defensive pass interference that extended a drive, and later was beaten badly on a corner route that put Buffalo in range. Rookie corner Nate Wiggins drew flags and gave up explosives down the field. Roquan Smith was stretched thin in underneath zones, tasked with carrying verticals without help, which left crossers free to carve up the middle. Even Kyle Hamilton, one of the steadier players, had no chance to impact the game because receivers never faced contact at the line. When Baltimore finally brought five, the rush was late and uncoordinated, leaving Allen with easy one-on-one matchups.
The numbers only add weight to the eye test. Buffalo racked up 497 yards and scored on eight of twelve drives, including four times in the fourth quarter alone. Baltimore’s offense wasn’t perfect, but the defense’s collapse erased a two-score cushion in under ten minutes. For a unit branded as one of the league’s best, the showing was closer to the bottom tier than elite.
— JacksonMuse (@Jackson_muse) September 9, 2025
The reset has to start immediately. The NFL is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately league. Orr proved down the stretch last year that he can call a great defense, but Week 1 instantly turned a cold seat into a warm one. Harbaugh, Orr, and this defense need a rebound Sunday against a Cleveland Browns team that has already chirped through the week.
If the issues linger into the upcoming stretch against the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, or Los Angeles Rams, the questions surrounding this coaching staff will grow louder. Baltimore has the talent, but now they have to prove it before this season slips away.