No Lamar Jackson, no problem.
With the Ravens’ season effectively on the line Sunday afternoon at M&T Bank Stadium, quarterback Tyler Huntley started in place of the injured two-time NFL Most Valuable Player and filled in admirably, throwing for 186 yards and a touchdown and running for another 53 yards. Just as importantly, he was mistake-free in his first start for Baltimore since a painful playoff defeat in January 2023.
Huntley’s performance helped set up Tyler Loop field goals from 42, 28 and 32 yards and two short Derrick Henry touchdown runs, while a Nate Wiggins interception led to a 9-yard scoring strike to tight end Charlie Kolar to seal a much-needed 30-16 victory.
The win ends a four-game skid for Baltimore (2-5) and provides the first step toward the ultimate goal of making the playoffs.
It also ended a six-game winless slide for the Ravens in which Jackson, who missed his third straight game because of a hamstring injury suffered in last month’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, had not started. Baltimore is now 5-12 in games that he has not played since taking over in 2018.
Meanwhile, Baltimore’s beleaguered defense, which came into the week last in the NFL in points allowed per game but felt like it started to find a little something in a loss to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 6, continued its upward trajectory, even if only slightly.
Defensive coordinator Zach Orr said the biggest focus of the bye week was figuring out how to generate more pressure on opposing quarterbacks. On Sunday, he finally found some.
First, it was safety Kyle Hamilton racing through unblocked to force an intentional grounding penalty on a third down midway through the second quarter. Cornerback Marlon Humphrey did the same one series later.
The two plays led to Bears quarterback Caleb Williams (25 of 38 passing for 285 yards) throwing to no one and drawing flags to help spark a 10-6 Baltimore lead at the half. It was the Ravens’ first halftime lead since Week 2 — their only victory of the season coming into the game.
The Ravens’ defense also kept Chicago, which entered Sunday on a four-game winning streak, out of the end zone on two first-half drives that stalled at Baltimore’s 14- and 22-yard lines with the Bears having to settle for a pair of Cairo Santos field goals.
Early in the fourth quarter, Chicago finally found the end zone, capping an 11-play, 83-yard drive that ended with a 2-yard run by D’Andre Swift (11 carries, 45 yards) and cut the deficit to 16-13, but that was as close as it would get.
Kolar’s score pushed the lead back to 10, and Henry (71 yards, 21 carries) scored his second touchdown of the game from 2 yards out with 2:09 remaining. The two touchdowns were the 111th and 112th of his career, pushing him past Walter Payton for fifth all-time among running backs.
The victory was also a moment of redemption for Huntley.
The last time he had started a game this important for Baltimore was in January 2023. In that wild-card contest against the Bengals, the Ravens were on Cincinnati’s 1-yard line in the fourth quarter and on the cusp of breaking a 17-17 tie when he attempted to dive over the defense into the end zone. Instead, Huntley had the ball stripped by linebacker Logan Wilson, and defensive end Sam Hubbard returned it 98 yards for the game-clinching score.
This time, there was no such heartache.
More significantly, the performance kept Baltimore’s postseason hopes alive and was a dose of positivity after what had been a tumultuous week.
Less than 24 hours earlier, the NFL said it was investigating the team’s handling of Jackson’s practice participation earlier in the week.
Baltimore could be subject to discipline because the team originally listed the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player as a full participant in Friday’s practice. A day later, his practice participation was changed to limited.
But that will be a problem for another day.
The Ravens will next head to South Florida for a Thursday night prime-time showdown against the Miami Dolphins.
This article will be updated. Have a news tip? Contact Brian Wacker at bwacker@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/brianwacker1.