6 Winners and 6 Losers From Ravens' Home-Opening Loss To Saints

Here are half a dozen winners and half a dozen losers from the Ravens' second game of the 2026 regular season.

Sep 20, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman (7) celebrates after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter against the New Orleans Saints at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Baltimore Ravens suffered their first setback of the 2026 regular season under head coach Jesse Minter on Sunday afternoon after allowing the New Orleans Saints to rally back in the fourth quarter and beat them 24-17 in Week 2 at M&T Bank Stadium.

They came into this game favored to win by more than a touchdown and looking to reverse their fortunes on their home turf after finishing with a franchise-worst 3-6 record in front of the Flock. Instead, the Ravens of old reared their ugly heads, and the same mistakes that marred the end of the last regime caused their downfall in this game as they blew yet another double-digit fourth-quarter lead.

Here are several Ravens players and coaches who stepped up and showed out, and others who either made some costly mistakes from coaching and execution standpoints.

Winners

WR Rashod Bateman

With two-time Pro Bowler Zay Flowers out due to a hamstring injury, the sixth-year veteran stepped up as the Ravens No. 1 wideout and had his most productive game since Week 3 of last season by leading the team with seven catches on nine targets for 88 receiving yards and a touchdown. He caught some flak in the immediate aftermath of the game regarding speculation about him running the wrong route on the game-ending interception, but was exonerated by Lamar Jackson during a post-game press conference.

EDGE Mike Green

Sep 20, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens linebacker Mike Green (15) celebrates a sack in the third quarter against the New Orleans Saints at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After a quiet 2026 debut in the opener, the second-year pro was much more impactful and disruptive in this game, finishing with a pair of tackles for loss, two quarterback hits and a drive-ending sack on a key third down late in the third quarter.

WR Devontez Walker

The third-year pro was head-scratchingly underutilized in this game, playing just 17 offensive snaps, but continued to make the most of his limited opportunities in the passing attack by fighting through a defensive hold to haul in one of his two targets for a field-flipping 47-yard gain in the second quarter.

EGDE Tavius Robinson

The fourth-year pro is on pace to shatter his career-high single-season sack total after recording his second in back-to-back games to open the season. Robinson finished with two solo tackles, including one for a loss and a quarterback hit.

ILB Trenton Simpson

Sep 20, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens linebacker Trenton Simpson (32) reacts after a defensive stop in the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Saints at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Robinson wasn't the only fourth-year pro balling out in this game, as his 2023 draft classmate was flying around making plays all over the field at and behind the line of scrimmage. Simpson finished with the third-most total tackles on the team with six, including five solos and one for a big loss after a fumbled snap.

Run defense

The Ravens did a great job of not letting the Saints gain any traction on the ground, holding them to just 65 yards on 27 carries for a measly average of 2.4 yards. They stood especially tall at the goal line at the end of the game, where they stuffed New Orleans on back-to-back quarterback sneaks from the one-yard line, with the second being controversially called and upheld as a touchdown upon official review.

Losers

Sep 20, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens head coach Jesse Minter looks on in the first quarter against the New Orleans Saints at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

HC Jesse Minter

The Ravens' vaunted defensive mastermind couldn't outwit a second-year quarterback making just his 11th career start. Tyler Shough was highly efficient at throwing the ball underneath and at the intermediate level, going 27-of-34 for 252 passing yards, a touchdown, no turnovers, and a passer rating of 107.4. They allowed the Saints to convert on 8-of-15 on third down and were especially inconsistent on third-and-long.

Minter didn't do enough in the fourth quarter to take advantage of the mismatch on the Shough's blindside after starting left tackle Kelvin Banks was carted off after getting hurt on Green's sack. There was also the questionable decision to challenge a three-yard completion early in the fourth quarter that cost them a precious timeout that would've been great to have on their final offensive possession.

OC Declan Doyle

It was truly a tale of two halves for the Ravens' young offensive wunderkind. He went from calling a great game in the first half for a team that was missing one of its top weapons to dialing up a Todd Monken special in the second half, in terms of forgetting that he has one of the best running backs ever to play the game in Derrick Henry, who only carried the ball five times over he final two quarters after recording 11 carries for 51 in he first two.

Doyle should've leaned on his bell cow a lot more, especially on the pivotal third-and-1 from their own 37-yard line, given that the game was tied and the odds of converting with Henry in that situation were much higher than taking a deep shot down the middle of the field to a reserve receiver.

Pass defense

When it mattered most in key situations, the Ravens' second- and third-level defenders were either late to or out of position to come up with stops and get off the field throughout this game, but especially in the fourth quarter when the Saints mounted back-to-back touchdown drives of 10-plus plays and over 60 yards. Between missed tackles and guys leaving their man to try to make a play elsewhere, they were their own worst enemy far too often in this game.

EDGE Trey Hendrickson

Sep 20, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) runs with the ball while under pressure by Baltimore Ravens linebacker Trey Hendrickson (91) in the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Ravens brought in the four-time Pro Bowler to be one of the main catalysts to help prevent inexcusable late collapses such as what transpired on Sunday. After spending all spring and summer talking him up as their long-lost fourth-quarter finisher who possesses a knack for coming up with clutch sacks and pressures to close out games, Hendrickson failed to deliver. While he did record his first sack as a Raven late in the third quarter and was close to notching more on several different occasions, he couldn't find a way to get home in the final 15 minutes, going up against a backup left tackle one-on-one most of the time.

WR Chris Moore

The 11th-year pro went from being extremely clutch in Week 1 after getting elevated from the practice squad to being anything but after getting signed to the 53-man roster earlier in the week. Moore started the game opposite Bateman and played the second-most snaps at the position on offense with 32. He got called for more penalties than he had catches, which was one for six yards and a first down, but his holding penalty negated a 10-plus-yard first-down run by Jackson, and he was called for a false start late in the third quarter that was followed by back-to-back negative plays from scrimmage and resulted in a Ravens three-and-out.

OT Carson Vinson

There was some speculation that the second-year pro might've made his first career start if two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Ronnie Stanley couldn't play, but that didn't end up being the case. Nevertheless, he wound up seeing the field and harming the team, as he was the player who allowed the penetration on the blocked field goal in the first half, and then he finished the game on Jackson's blindside after Stanley left and struggled holding up in pass protection.