Ravens' AFC North Hopes Take Major Hit

The Baltimore Ravens face an uphill battle to repeat as division champions.

Nov 17, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin (left) and Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh (right) shake hands after the game at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

After winning the AFC North convincingly last season, the Baltimore Ravens entered this season with their sights set on a division crown. Unfortunately, their odds of repeating just got a whole lot longer.

On Sunday, the Ravens lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers 18-16 on the road, dropping them to 7-4 on the season. In an unexpected twist, the defense played pretty well while the offense floundered, not helped by Justin Tucker missing two key field goals. No matter who's at fault, though, the Ravens once again failed to beat their arch rivals, having now dropeed eight of the last nine meetings.

In the bigger picture, this loss put a big dent in the Ravens' hopes of winning the division. They're now 1.5 games behind the Steelers in the standings, and they lose the head-to-head tiebreaker. They'll have a chance to even the score at home on Dec. 21, but even in the unlikely scenario where they win out, they'd still need some help to take the crown.

At the very least, it's essentially a two-horse race for the division, and Sunday's other results only confirmed it.

In the early window, the Cleveland Browns dropped yet another game with a 35-14 road loss to the New Orleans Saints. Jameis Winston played well in his return to New Orleans, completing 30 of 46 passes for 395 yards and two touchdowns, but didn't receive the support needed to win. The star of the show was the Saints' Swiss Army knife in Taysom Hill, who rushed for 138 yards and three touchdowns while adding 50 yards as a receiver.

The Browns now fall to 2-8 on the season, and they're all but eliminated from playoff contention. They do play the Steelers on Thursday Night Football, though, so they could help the Ravens out with an upset victory.

Then on Sunday Night Football, the Cincinnati Bengals dropped yet another heartbreaker in a 34-27 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Cincinnati pulled itself out of a 21-point hole and tied the game early in the fourth quarter, but just couldn't finish the job. Former Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins was the hero for the Chargers, scoring on a 29-yard run with 12 seconds left.

For the Bengals, this story is all too familiar. Joe Burrow was excellent as he completed 28 of 50 passes for 356 yards and three touchdowns, as were Tee Higgins (nine receptions for 145 yards and a touchdown) and Ja'Marr Chase (seven receptions for 75 yards and two touchdowns), yet it still wasn't enough. Despite all three players excelling throughout the season, the Bengals essentially need to win out to have any chance of making it back to the postseason.

The Ravens face the Chargers on Monday Night Football, so this game should be a great preview of sorts.

According to ESPN's Football Power Index, the Steelers have a 67 percent chance to win the division, followed by the Ravens at 32.7 percent and Bengals at 0.3 percent. There's still a lot of divisional games to be played, but time is not on Baltimore's side.

Make sure you bookmark Baltimore Ravens on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

• Ravens Share Update on Key Injuries
• Mike Tomlin Roasts Ravens For Patrick Queen Decision
• Ravens Beating Themselves In Losses
• Ravens' Lamar Jackson Airs Out Frustrations After Loss
• Ravens HC Denies Comment on Strange Marlon Humphrey Situation