The struggling Ravens must now continue to move forward without their two-time AP NFL Most Valuable Player. Baltimore has lost four straight to fall to 1-5, tied for its worst start in franchise history, with the last two losses coming without Jackson.
The Ravens are 5-12 without Jackson since 2019 when he became the team’s solid starter from the start of the season.
In four starts this season, the Ravens quarterback was stellar despite going 1-3, completing 71.6% of his passes for a league-best 10.78 yards per attempt, 10 touchdowns and just one interception.
Cooper Rush started in Jackson’s place the past two games, but struggled with just 251 total passing yards in the start, no touchdowns and four interceptions. Huntley was replaced by Huntley in the team’s Week 6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Now Huntley will replace Rush as the Ravens’ fill-in for Jackson.
It’s a familiar role for Huntley, who has a 5-9 record as a career starter. Five of those starters came for the Miami Dolphins last season, while the rest came for Baltimore in Jackson’s place. From 2021-2023, Huntley was 3-6 as a starter and earned a somewhat infamous 2024 Pro Bowl selection despite playing in just six games with four starts.
While no one can replace Jackson’s dual-threat skills, as evidenced by him being the NFL’s career rushing yards standard for a QB, Huntley’s skill set is much more similar to Jackson’s than to Rush’s.
Since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, only four teams have made the playoffs after a 1-5 start to the season. The Ravens are aiming for the fifth, but in order to make the postseason a reality, they must snap a four-game losing streak without Jackson.
The Ravens (1-5) open against the visiting Bears (4-2) at 1:00 PM ET Sunday.