Ravens’ 2026 schedule: Ranking the 17 games from easiest (Browns) to hardest (Bills)

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John Harbaugh’s final year in Baltimore kicked off with an early-season gauntlet. Jesse Minter is getting a more accommodating start to his head coaching tenure.

The Ravens won’t play a divisional opponent until mid-October or a 2025 playoff team until early November. Then the difficulty level kicks up a notch or two: a five-game stretch, starting in Week 8, in which the Ravens play five playoff teams, including two in primetime. Another late-season tour through the AFC North could decide the division champion.

With less than four months until the 2026 season opener in Indianapolis, here’s how the Ravens’ schedule stacks up, with games ranked from least to most difficult.

17. Week 16 vs. Cleveland Browns

The Browns still don’t have a viable starting quarterback — no, Deshaun Watson doesn’t count — and they lost defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz this offseason after firing head coach Kevin Stefanski. Former Ravens coach Todd Monken is taking over a good young core and should bring new ideas to Cleveland, but defensive end Myles Garrett can win only so many games by himself. Even the Browns’ special teams play was bad last year, ranking No. 32 overall, according to FTN. With a game this late in the season, will Cleveland be playing for anything but pride and draft position?

16. Week 4 vs. Tennessee Titans

After a three-win 2025 season, the Titans should take a step forward under new coach Robert Saleh. So should quarterback and former top pick Cam Ward, who will have to carry an offense that lacks playmakers and stability up front. Tennessee’s defensive front is talented enough to take over games, but the secondary is gettable.

15. Week 6 at Browns

The Ravens almost never get gimmes in Cleveland. They’re 3-3 since 2020 at Huntington Bank Field, including a late win last season that featured a trick play touchdown from tight end Mark Andrews and a dreadful relief performance from Browns backup quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Maybe the Ravens can breathe easier under Minter.

14. Week 2 vs. New Orleans Saints

The Saints, who’ve won just 11 games over the past two seasons, have quietly turned their franchise around. New Orleans’ defense was one of the NFL’s most pleasant surprises last year, finishing 12th in efficiency, according to FTN, without much star power. On offense, a line bookended by two young first-round tackles and bolstered by guard David Edwards’ arrival should improve. Quarterback Tyler Shough will have a more dynamic receiving corps in Year 2, with Chris Olave paired with first-round pick Jordyn Tyson. But they’ll have to contend with an eager crowd at the Ravens’ home opener.

13. Week 11 at Carolina Panthers

The Panthers made the playoffs last season at 8-9, then put a scare into the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round. But Carolina was mostly a mediocre team; its offense ranked 25th in efficiency, according to FTN, and its defense 21st. Expectations are higher now, especially for quarterback Bryce Young and a defense that has potential stars at almost every level. But Young is inconsistent, his weapons are iffy, and left tackle Ikem Ekwonu is recovering from a ruptured patellar tendon that could impact his midseason availability.

12. Week 14 vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

If not for the Ravens’ Week 13 bye, this game would be considered more difficult. The Buccaneers have won at least eight games in six straight seasons, with four NFC South titles in that span. But last season was a disappointment on both sides of the ball; Tampa Bay didn’t have a top-16 offense or defense, according to FTN. Quarterback Baker Mayfield will need the offensive line to regain its elite form, or else the loss of wide receiver Mike Evans will loom even larger. First-round pick Rueben Bain should help a solid run defense, but he’ll be needed more on a pass defense that underwhelmed in 2025.

11. Week 5 at Atlanta Falcons

Quarterback Michael Penix, who tore his ACL in November, is on schedule to be ready for Week 1, according to Stefanski, their new coach. He should be more comfortable by this mid-October “Sunday Night Football” matchup. But will he be good enough to hold off Tua Tagovailoa in training camp or during a potential midseason slump? Atlanta’s quarterback play could limit the potential of star running back Bijan Robinson and wide receiver Drake London. The Falcons’ offensive line could also take a step back with the departure of line coach Dwayne Ledford, now in Baltimore. Their defense, while talented, is young and struggled against the run last year.

10. Week 18 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Yes, another regular-season finale against the Steelers. Pittsburgh has won six of the past eight meetings, including an AFC North-deciding sweep of the Ravens last year. Now that Mike Tomlin is gone as Steelers coach, will the Ravens’ usual troubles vanish with him? Probably not. Pittsburgh has one of the NFL’s better rosters. With the Steelers’ investment in the trenches, they can own the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, and they have enough skill position talent to hang with anyone. But two big question marks loom: Can quarterback Aaron Rodgers — if he’s indeed back — maintain his mastery of the Ravens, or will he regress to his rather pedestrian mean? And what do the Steelers lose (and gain) with Mike McCarthy in charge?

9. Week 1 at Indianapolis Colts

The Jesse Minter era will get off to a low-key start: a 1 p.m. game in Indianapolis, not far from where his coaching career began two decades ago as an intern at Notre Dame. But the timing might work out for the Ravens. Colts quarterback Daniel Jones, who tore his Achilles tendon in December and is expected to be ready by training camp, could be rusty as he gets up to game speed. A rejiggered offensive line might also need time to jell. Of course, the timing could work against the Ravens as well: Indianapolis started 7-1 last season, led by star running back Jonathan Taylor, and now it should have star cornerback Sauce Gardner to help on defense.

8. Week 9 vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

It’s a brave new world when the Jaguars are no longer an afterthought on the Ravens’ schedule. Coach Liam Cohen oversaw a nine-win improvement in his debut last season, leading Jacksonville to an AFC South title. Now the challenge is sustaining that success. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence will need more from wide receiver Brian Thomas, who had a quiet 2025 after a promising rookie year. And the defense will need cornerback Travis Hunter to make the leap, especially with playmaking inside linebacker Devin Lloyd now playing in Carolina. The Jaguars had a top-15 offense and a top-10 defense last season, according to FTN, but both units could veer wildly in either direction in 2026. The short-week turnaround for a “Thursday Night Football” game always disadvantages the road team — in this case, Jacksonville.

7. Week 7 vs. Cincinnati Bengals

No game on the Ravens’ schedule could be more important than this. If Cincinnati is indeed the Ravens’ top threat in the AFC North, they’ll need to hold serve at M&T Bank Stadium. It won’t be easy. Quarterback Joe Burrow has maybe the NFL’s best wide receiver duo back at his disposal, and the Bengals’ offensive line might finally be solid. On defense, after losing end Trey Hendrickson in free agency, Cincinnati invested heavily in its line, signing defensive end Boye Mafe and trading for lineman Dexter Lawrence. And the Ravens will get the Bengals coming off a Week 6 bye.

6. Week 3 vs. Dallas Cowboys (in Brazil)

Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanã Stadium is a long way from Baltimore. Even if the one-hour time difference is negligible, the Ravens will lose a day on their transcontinental flight. And they can prepare only so much for a unique atmosphere that should have a pro-Cowboys crowd. Then there’s the personnel challenges: Quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb spearhead a talented, balanced offense. Defensive lineman Quinnen Williams and the Cowboys’ pass rush will test the Ravens’ offense, but can rookie safety Caleb Downs shore up the secondary?

5. Week 10 vs. Los Angeles Chargers

Even with John Harbaugh out of the picture, there will be plenty of familiarity here. Minter was Jim Harbaugh’s defensive coordinator over the past four seasons, first at Michigan and then in Los Angeles. Anthony Weaver served as defensive coordinator for Mike McDaniel, now the Chargers’ offensive coordinator, in their two seasons together in Miami. Former Ravens tight end Charlie Kolar and running back Keaton Mitchell will make homecomings. Quarterback Lamar Jackson hasn’t lost in his three starts against quarterback Justin Herbert, but the Chargers’ offense should be dynamic. Whether their defense is as stingy as last year’s is another matter. Also helping the Ravens: an 11-day layoff before this “Monday Night Football” showdown.

4. Week 15 at Steelers

Jackson has started just five games at Acrisure Stadium. He’s won only once in Pittsburgh, an overtime win in 2019. Last year offered another gut punch, with his fourth-quarter magic ruined by a disappearing Ravens defense in a last-minute, season-ending loss. Expect another close game: The past seven meetings have been decided by seven points or fewer, with an average margin of victory of just 3.1.

3. Week 17 at Bengals

The tables have finally turned in this series. The Bengals had to play four straight primetime games in Baltimore. Now the Ravens head to Cincinnati on limited rest for a “Thursday Night Football” game, Hendrickson’s first trip back to his old stomping grounds. The Bengals shocked the Ravens in Baltimore on Thanksgiving Day last year, winning at night in Burrow’s return from a turf toe injury. Now the Ravens can repay the favor.

2. Week 12 at Houston Texans

The Ravens should have their offense figured out by late November, but they’ll need it humming for this matchup. Houston’s defense finished second in rushing, passing and overall efficiency last season, according to FTN, and returns 10 starters. Defensive ends Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter and cornerback Derek Stingley earned All-Pro honors, and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, cornerback Kamari Lassiter and safety Jalen Pitre are impact players, too. If quarterback C.J. Stroud can put an awful playoff performance behind him and settle into a rhythm behind an improved offensive line, Houston could have the AFC’s scariest team.

1. Week 8 at Buffalo Bills

Could it be anyone else? The Ravens and Bills are the AFC’s early Super Bowl favorites. Quarterbacks Josh Allen and Jackson have won two of the past three NFL Most Valuable Player awards. Both front offices made big swings in the offseason, with the Ravens signing Hendrickson and Buffalo trading for wide receiver DJ Moore. The Bills have won four of the past five meetings in the series, including back-to-back games decided in the final 90 seconds. The Ravens won just once in six tries at the old Highmark Stadium; now they’ll get a shot at starting over in the new Highmark Stadium. It’s all “Game of the Year”-type material, even if it’s not slotted for primetime.