Mike Preston: Ravens' schedule sets up well for late-season surge

BALTIMORE - The NFL always provides suspense.

This year, the Ravens will close out the regular season with four consecutive AFC North games. The finale is a matchup against the Steelers. If that sounds familiar, then you are onto something.

The Ravens lost, 26-24, in Pittsburgh on the final play last season, as rookie kicker Tyler Loop missed a 44-yard field goal attempt to dash Baltimore's postseason hopes. That game drew 25.5 million viewers, seventh-best among all Sunday night games and second-best for the Ravens behind Thanksgiving night against the Bengals.

Why not go back to the magic?

It's Pittsburgh versus Baltimore in perhaps the NFL's most heated rivalry. It's Lamar Jackson versus possibly Aaron Rodgers, two eventual Hall of Famers, even though Rodgers has yet to declare that he will play for the Steelers next season. But admit it, we're all going to watch.

The NFL has done a terrific job of packaging the Ravens in the final four games because they are against AFC North rivals. No one really knows what to expect, but a team has to be in position to be in position, to borrow an old coaching cliche.

It appears that Ravens rookie coach Jesse Minter could win his first five or six games based on the opening schedule that includes Indianapolis (8-9 a year ago), New Orleans (6-11), Dallas (7-9), Tennessee (3-14), Atlanta (8-9) and Cleveland (5-12).

But here is the rub: Minter has never called a complete game in the NFL. He has made some decisions as the Los Angeles Chargers' defensive coordinator, but none that have had such a significant impact, like throwing the challenge flag or calling timeouts in the final two minutes of games.

The same can be said for new Ravens offensive coordinator Declan Doyle. He might have worked for some of the best offensive minds in the league, including Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton and the Chicago Bears' Ben Johnson, but he has yet to call a play in an NFL game. It's also a new situation for defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, who isn't calling the defensive signals after doing so for two seasons with the Miami Dolphins.

There will be some growing pains here.

Maybe Minter and the Ravens start 6-0. Or maybe they go 3-3, with Jackson having to learn a new West Coast offensive system and his receivers having to operate in a new route tree. An offensive line without center Tyler Linderbaum could struggle from the onset despite the coaching of Dwayne Ledford, one of the best in the business as far as developing outside zone schemes.

The final four games, though, are ideal matchups.

The Ravens should have worked out a lot of their wrinkles by then. Pittsburgh, regardless of where the game is played, is beatable. Has Cincinnati really beefed up its defense, or are the Bengals just hoping Joe Burrow throws for more than 300 yards and scores 40 points per game? Like the Steelers, the Browns don't know who will be the starting quarterback. Is it Deshaun Watson or Shedeur Sanders? Really, does it matter? Former Ravens offensive coordinator and current Cleveland coach Todd Monken has very little to work with this time.

He has a clue, but doubt surrounds both quarterbacks.

One major scheduling problem is that the Ravens have to play the Bills in Buffalo in Week 8, then face Jacksonville in Baltimore on a Thursday night game. That's two playoff-contending teams in less than a week. Tough break.

But overall, this schedule is not something to fear. This is the AFC, not the NFC, which has two really strong teams in the Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams. A year ago, the New England Patriots finished the regular season with a 4-13 record.

Then they brought in a new coach, Mike Vrabel, and a new offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels. They find out that quarterback Drake Maye, drafted No. 3 overall in 2024 out of North Carolina, is a star. Last season, the Patriots opened with a 20-13 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, followed by a 33-27 win against Miami and a 21-14 loss to Pittsburgh.

New England finished the season at 14-3 before losing to Seattle, 29-13, in Super Bowl LX.

It can happen here in Baltimore. The Ravens have some challenges on tap like the Chargers, Panthers, Jaguars, Bills and Steelers, all playoff teams from a year ago, but it's never important how you start, just how you finish.

The Ravens are set up perfectly.

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This story was originally published May 16, 2026 at 2:37 AM.