Ravens must rebound quickly to save their season

The Ravens are probably a better overall team than their 4-3 record indicates. Baltimore could have beaten the Saints on Sunday and shouldn’t have lost to Cleveland a few weeks ago. However, that no longer matters.

Baltimore simply left too many opportunities on the field in both games and now they find themselves tied for second in the AFC North with the Cincinnati Bengals.

It’s always difficult to recover from such a devastating loss like the Ravens suffered last week. There’s no telling if they would have beaten the Saints had the game gone to overtime, but we’ll never know.

Baltimore does not have much time to lick their wounds, as the schedule only gets tougher from here on out. A road matchup against the Carolina Panthers this upcoming week is arguably a must-win contest.

The Panthers are a talented team across the board and are riding high after a fourth quarter comeback victory against the defending champions. Carolina also beat the Bengals earlier in the season and currently sit at 4-2.

After Carolina, the Ravens face the following teams; Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Oakland, Atlanta and Kansas City. With the exception of the Raiders, none of these teams can be considered favorable matchups.

The Steelers and Bengals always prove to be difficult outs and Baltimore’s 1-2 record against AFC North foes only makes these games more important. Atlanta may have a losing record, but that’s more so because of injuries than pure talent.

With Matt Ryan and Julio Jones, the Falcons offense is one of the best in the league and they score enough points to compete with almost any team. So too is the case with Kansas City, who have lost just one game this season to New England.

The Falcons and Chiefs have two of the biggest home-field advantages in the league and the Ravens face both teams on the road. Stealing just one of these matchups will prove to be a difficult task.

Over the next six weeks, we will find out exactly what this Ravens team is made of. If they handle their business against a slew of talented teams, Baltimore may very well find themselves atop the division heading into the home stretch of the season.

However, if they struggle to execute in key moments, the Ravens could fall out of the postseason race and miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. Buckle up, Ravens fans.