This has to be the year for the Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens have sat comfortably among the NFL's elite for most of the Lamar Jackson era. Yet all they have to show for it is a painful collection of playoff disappointments.

If there's ever been a time for that to change, it's now.

With each passing year, the challenge of getting through a gauntlet of AFC contenders is becoming more difficult. An equally daunting Super Bowl matchup awaits whoever emerges in 2025. But the Ravens have never been better positioned to get over the hump.

Last year's team had the makings of a champion before eventual heartbreak in Buffalo. Jackson took his well-established game to even greater heights as the Ravens offense posted the fourth-best rating in the history of DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average), which dates back to 1978. Individually, Jackson became the first player to throw 40 touchdowns with fewer than five interceptions, and no other signal-caller has ever topped 4,000 passing yards while rushing for 800. MVP voting aside, Jackson produced one of the best seasons we've ever seen from a quarterback.

Derrick Henry's arrival provided a dream complement in the ground game, with the future Hall of Famer defying running back regression models to rack up 1,921 rushing yards and a league-best 16 touchdowns. Paired with Jackson, the superstar tandem created a pick-your-poison scenario in which opposing defenses would almost always be wrong.

We have every reason to expect more fireworks from Baltimore's offense in the season ahead. The Ravens are returning four of five starters on a solid offensive line to lead the way for Jackson and Henry. DeAndre Hopkins provides key depth for a strong group of pass-catchers, and coordinator Todd Monken is back after being passed over for head coaching jobs.

The ceiling for the defense is every bit as high.

Baltimore rebounded from a rocky start under first-year defensive coordinator Zach Orr to take flight over the second half of the 2024 season. Combined with the historic output they got from the offense, that run was a big reason I considered the Ravens the team to beat when the playoffs got underway.

The same unit now heads into training camp bolstered by three new potential game-changers: first-round safety Malaki Starks, second-round pass-rusher Mike Green, and two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander. The latter joined the club Wednesday after the Green Bay Packers recently released him.

Starks, an instinctive coverage defender out of Georgia, figures to be an excellent running mate for superstar safety Kyle Hamilton in the deep middle. Green was a consensus Day 1 talent who offers the explosiveness and rush arsenal to become the kind of consistent edge threat this defense has long been missing.

Alexander could be the cherry on top of an already excellent offseason for Baltimore's front office. There's certainly some risk involved, considering the move was only made possible by recent injury issues that limited him to back-to-back seven-game seasons in Green Bay. But the Ravens weren't exactly in dire need of another starter at cornerback. They're simply chasing the upside that comes with one of the most talented cover men in football.

Adding that kind of player next to first-team All-Pro Marlon Humphrey and sophomore breakout candidate Nate Wiggins - with Chidobe Awuzie sliding back into a high-level depth role - likely gives Baltimore the NFL's premier cornerback group. Factor in Hamilton and Starks on the back end, and defensive backfields don't get much better than this on paper.

Last season, Baltimore finished with 54 sacks and a minus-0.16 EPA/play against the run, both good for second league-wide. Given how the Ravens can dominate in the trenches, this defense could be even better than the one that terrorized opposing offenses down the stretch.

We may very well be looking at a juggernaut with top-three potential on both sides of the ball. All things considered, this might be the only roster in football that rivals the defending champion Philadelphia Eagles. Still, the Ravens know as well as anyone that none of it matters until you do something in the playoffs.

With Jackson's cap number jumping to $74.6 million in 2026, several impact players (Mark Andrews, Tyler Linderbaum, Odafe Oweh) nearing free agency, and Henry's inevitable drop-off, Baltimore may never get a better opportunity than this.

Now's the time for the Ravens to make it happen.

Dan Wilkins is theScore's senior NFL writer.