The Baltimore Ravens have a kicking issue, and the answers given on Tyler Loop are simply not good enough.
The Baltimore Ravens are expected to be a team that can challenge the AFC North, the AFC, and the Super Bowl. At least, that has been the expectation placed on them from outside perspectives.
With the arrival of Jesse Minter and the preseason games thus far proving the team's depth may be very good, there is one glaring issue. Tyler Loop is not consistent, and the answers to the kicking issue are simply not good enough.
Loop missed a 44-yard field goal to end the 2025 season, which would have sent the Ravens to the playoffs. Instead, they lost, and the result was a complete coaching staff overhaul.
This is not to say that John Harbaugh being fired was because of Loop, but the kicker certainly did not help matters.
Fast forward to the end of preseason, and the glaring issue this roster is facing is the inconsistency from their lone kicker.
Loop was 2-for-4 in the third and final preseason game, missing one from 51 yards and one from 58 yards, which led to an array of boos. This places his total at 5-for-8, which is a 62.5 accuracy percentage.
That is simply not good enough. Kicking is one of the most important elements of any football team, and a poor kicking game can lead to some tough losses, i.e., the end of the 2025 season for the Ravens.
Instead of bringing in a kicker to compete with Loop through OTAs and minicamp, the Baltimore coaching staff stood pat, and now that decision is rearing its ugly head.
During media availability, head coach Jesse Minter spoke about the plan, saying they will "look at it."
"You want to see makes in games. It's something we'll continue to look at. We'll continue to look at what the best situation is there. He has had a good camp overall, but it comes down to making the kicks in the pressure situations in the game. So, that's what we'll always look at to make sure we're doing what's best for the team," Minter said.
Minter may have offered some coach speak on the Loop situation, but the simplest route would be to bring in a kicker. Considering all 32 teams have to cut down their rosters from 90 to 53, the Ravens should be prioritizing finding a new kicker, or at least be heavily considering bringing someone onto the practice squad.
The Loop experiment has gone on for far too long, and the simple fact is that he must make kicks during live-game action. Preseason football is also the time to fix costly mistakes, but that has not been the case.
Loop has made five of his eight field goals, but it is those misses that could be disastrous in a regular season format.
There is a wealth of tough AFC teams that the Ravens must get through, and that does not include the NFC teams as well. Strong defensive games will make kicking that much more crucial, and the Baltimore special teams will need to be top-notch.
Simply put, the Ravens going into the 2026 season with Loop not being pushed to stay consistent could end up coming back to haunt them yet again.
