Baltimore’s 2025 nightmare deepens as injuries derail a once-expected title run. A 44-10 loss to Houston drops the Ravens to 1-4, the defense yielding season-worst numbers while the offense, shuffled by Cooper Rush, stalled behind an injury-riddled depth chart. CJ Stroud torched the secondary for four TDs as Noel bagged his first NFL score, shadowed by Ray Lewis’ squirrel-dance nod before Jaire Alexander shoved the rookie. A major roster rebuild looks overdue.

With half the season still ahead, Harbaugh vows to “find ourselves” after the bye, while the Ravens lean on a young corps to grow up fast. Derrick Henry’s late TD tied Walter Payton for the fifth-most rushing scores, but Baltimore’s challenge isn’t just the scoreboard—it’s a roster-wide shortfall of impact talent as key veterans sit out and the defense struggles to generate stops.

Lamar Jackson sits out Week 5 as Cooper Rush steps in, turning Baltimore’s high-flying offense into a more run-leaning unit while the Ravens chase a must-win against Houston. Rush’s comfort with the role is balanced by Huntley’s backup status, creating a path for a conservative game plan centered on the run game and a retooled attack.

Defensively, Baltimore is banged up: Roquan Smith, Marlon Humphrey, and Patrick Ricard are inactive, and Kyle Hamilton is questionable. Yet Kyle Van Noy is back as a stabilizing pass-rush presence, and a cadre of young defenders will be asked to steady the unit. Houston comes in at 1-3, offering a relatively favorable matchup for fantasy managers who are forced to recalibrate without Baltimore’s usual star power.

Bottom line for fantasy players: expect a lower-ceiling Ravens offense, with emphasis on ball-control and field-position games, while Ravens’ defense tries to compensate with pressure and depth. Monitor late-week injury updates, especially on Hamilton and Stanley, for any bounce-back potential in Week 5.

Houston heads to Baltimore at 1-3, chasing its first road win against the Ravens after last year’s 2-31 blowout. Nico Collins urges the Texans to play their brand and stay true to themselves as they chase a Week 5 upset on the road.

The Ravens’ injury woes—Lamar Jackson, Ronnie Stanley, Roquan Smith, Marlon Humphrey, and Kyle Hamilton—loom, but Houston leans into identity and disciplined offense to flip the script in a high-stakes clash.