Chasing the Crown: Where do the Ravens Stand in the Post-Draft AFC North Hierarchy?

The months of May and June are not among the most active in the NFL, at least for what revolves around the gridiron. This portion of the year is dominated by front offices: they have contracts to renew, free agents to sign, trades to evaluate, and rosters to fill. The coaching staff may work with the teams and meet the rookies during the organized team activities (OTAs), but they have only a week or so to do that. 

Then the players are gone until the second half of July, when training camps start and the preseason kicks off. In a way, this is a period in which football isn’t completely back. As people say, though, there is never a true offseason in the league, as winners are built exactly during this time-frame.

The post-draft situation in the NFL

As soon as the draft concludes and undrafted free agents are signed, bookmakers and analysts write down their post-draft Power Rankings, placing the franchises according to the chances they think they have to go all the way to the Super Bowl. Right now, there’s a wide consensus behind the Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams, the two best teams in 2025. Behind them, the Denver Broncos are gaining some ground. But what about Baltimore?

The Ravens’ draft has been evaluated with a solid B+ from Chad Reuter and his guys at NFL.com, which is not a bad grade, even if it could have been better. Now the ball is in Jesse Minter’s court. The first-year head coach must find a way to put all the new pieces together and build a team that can play over the three phases.

Roster changes always trigger a ripple effect through NFL win totals and division projections. To see where Baltimore stands in the championship conversation after the draft, fans can check the oddschecker US homepage, to analyze market shifts ahead of the 2026 season and spot the most competitive numbers before the summer action begins. May OTAs are the right time-frame to look ahead and start to picture how rosters will look in the upcoming season.

Keys for Baltimore’s success in 2026

In modern football, a great quarterback defines a great team. Is Lamar Jackson a great quarterback? His statistics say so, obviously, the guy isn’t a two-time MVP because he’s a nice guy, but because he does know how to play ball; but then there’s playoff Lamar, the one who never manages to win games that count. This is somewhat concerning. In this game, nobody wins alone. The bodies called during the draft will hopefully fill some holes in the offensive line and help the defense in the pass rush. Olaivavega Ioane, the 14th overall pick, comes to Baltimore exactly to protect Lamar, while the other guard called up, Evan Beerntsen, drafted during the last round, is a rotation prospect that plans to do just the same.

The division, as usual, will be tough. It is not by chance that we called it a gauntlet a few days ago. There are two great defenses, in Pittsburgh and Cleveland, and an explosive offense, in Cincinnati. The Ravens are clearly on par with them, but must always keep their guard up to not let the fiery competitors have the best of them.

Can the Ravens win big next season?

The AFC should be more competitive than last year in 2026, but there are several question marks in the conference: will Mahomes be back at his usual level after the serious injury? Will the Buffalo Bills find a way to win under the new staff? How strong will the Broncos, Chargers, and Colts be? Are the Jaguars and Texans true contenders? In this complicated landscape, Baltimore could emerge as a playoff team. But the Ravens must do a couple of things to aspire to greatness: integrate rookies and new faces as soon as possible, ideally between the training camp and the preseason, and play as physically as possible, just as Jackson and Derrick Henry like to do. 

 Right now, maybe the Ravens are not considered the main contenders for the AFC crown, but they are certainly in the mix. Baltimore is one of the seven best teams in the American Conference and should easily get a ticket for the playoffs, barring relevant injuries. Their approach in the preseason (where they typically dominate) can give us precious insights about what 2026 will mean for the Flock.

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