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Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl Hopes Have Already Been Buried

Chris Canty makes a strong proclamation on 'First Take'.

Kyle Koster

Chris Canty doesn't see much hope for the Ravens.
Chris Canty doesn't see much hope for the Ravens. / First Take on X
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The Baltimore Ravens are now a very disappointing 1-3 after getting run off the field by the Kansas City Chiefs. Quarterback Lamar Jackson's future health remains an uncertain after sustaining an injury in the lopsided defeat. In short, high expectations have not been met out of the gate and John Harbaugh's side needs to right the ship in order to put themselves in position to make another deep run in the AFC playoff bracket.

Is it time to panic? Could this incredibly talented team already be dead in the water.

ESPN's Chris Canty seemed to think so and offered a strong proclamation.

"It's a wrap for the Baltimore Ravens," he said on Tuesday's First Take.

Canty pointed out that injuries are starting to stack up for the franchise and this year is beginning to remind him of Baltimore's 2015 campaign before saying it's a "travesty" that the Ravens haven't gotten to a Super Bowl with Jackson at the height of his powers.

Again, it is not yet October. And the extent of Jackson's injury is unclear with Harbaugh only suggesting it likely is not season-ending. Which leaves a pretty wide range of options for his return.

Obviously Baltimore is not a Super Bowl contender with anyone else playing quarterback. But the Ravens are four games into the season and their three losses have come to Buffalo, Detroit and Kansas City. So it may be O.K. to take a deep breath and see what happens over the next few weeks. If they can tread water and not lose too much ground in the standings and get Jackson back with an easier scehdule, it's not unreasonable to think they can get a ticket into the playoffs.

If that happens they'll have a strong team and proven coach and anything can happen.

This feels like the type of clip that could age quite interestingly. We'll see.

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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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