The 2024 Baltimore Ravens entered the campaign under massive pressure to break through their postseason glass ceiling, especially after falling short in the previous year’s AFC title game. Head coach John Harbaugh and general manager Eric DeCosta made the splash of the offseason by signing elite veteran running back Derrick Henry to form a terrifying backfield partnership alongside Lamar Jackson. To fortify the trenches and secondary, they injected premium draft capital by selecting tackle Roger Rosengarten and cornerback Nate Wiggins. The result was a highly physical, regular-season freight train that rolled to a 12-5 record, securing another highly competitive AFC North division crown. While their metrics screamed championship material, the season would ultimately culminate in familiar, frustrating postseason heartbreak rather than a trip to the Super Bowl.

Todd Monken’s offense morphed into an absolute buzzsaw, finishing first in the NFL in total yards and third in scoring by hanging 518 points (30.5 ppg) on opponents. Lamar Jackson turned in arguably the most efficient passing season of his career, shredding defenses for 4,172 passing yards and 41 touchdowns against just 4 interceptions, all while maintaining an elite 119.6 passer rating. The ground game was equally devastating, leading the league with 3,189 rushing yards, spearheaded by Derrick Henry’s league-high 1,921 yards and 16 touchdowns. Jackson chipped in 915 rushing yards of his own, making the option look completely unguardable. Through the air, Zay Flowers crossed the thousand-yard threshold with 1,059 receiving yards, while tight end Mark Andrews re-emerged as a major red-zone threat by snagging a team-high 11 touchdown receptions.

Defensively, the Ravens shifted into a high-variance unit under new leadership, finishing ninth in points allowed (21.2 ppg) but dropping to 31st against the pass. Despite the vulnerability through the air, their historic brick wall up front remained fully intact, ranking first in the league by surrendering only 1,361 rushing yards all season. Linebacker Roquan Smith anchored the second level with a staggering 154 combined tackles, while edge rusher Kyle Van Noy experienced a late-career renaissance by racking up a team-high 12.5 sacks. Odafe Oweh added 10.0 sacks of his own to fuel a fierce pass rush. In the secondary, cornerback Marlon Humphrey proved to be the ultimate ball-hawk by snatching 6 interceptions, while safety Kyle Hamilton did everything for the unit, accumulating 107 tackles and 2 forced fumbles.

Baltimore’s schedule was a wild ride of offensive fireworks and baffling defensive lapses. After a rocky 0-2 start featuring a tight opening-night loss to Kansas City, the Ravens found their stride by pulverizing the Buffalo Bills 35-10 in Week 4, highlighted by an 87-yard touchdown run from Henry. They followed that up with an wild 41-38 overtime shootout victory over the division rival Cincinnati Bengals. The true turning point of the late-season push came on Christmas Day, when the defense completely suffocated the Houston Texans in a 31-2 blowout. Baltimore closed out the year on a four-game winning streak, outscoring opponents 135-43 during the final month to capture the division and build serious momentum heading into January.

That regular-season momentum translated into a dominant 28-14 victory over the rival Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card round. However, the campaign came to a crashing halt in the Divisional Round during a heartbreaking 27-25 road defeat against the Buffalo Bills, where late fumbles and missed execution tanked their Super Bowl aspirations. Legacy-wise, this team etched its name into the history books as the first offense to ever eclipse 4,000 passing yards and 3,000 rushing yards in the same season. Jackson earned first-team All-Pro honors after becoming the first player to ever record 4,000 passing yards and 800 rushing yards in a single year, cementing this squad as one of the greatest regular-season juggernauts to never hoist the Lombardi trophy.