Why a Cleaner Start from the Ravens Backfield Could Change Everything in 2026
The Baltimore Ravens enter the 2026 season with a clear early opportunity to get right back into contender form, but that opportunity comes with a warning label. On paper, the first six weeks look manageable, with games against the Colts, Saints, Titans, Falcons, and Browns among the opening stretch, and that kind of schedule can be a gift or a trap. If the Ravens take care of business, they can establish early momentum under first-year head coach Jesse Minter and set the tone for a new era of football in Baltimore. If they don’t, the same kind of early-season frustration that haunted them the past two years could show up again.
That is where Derrick Henry becomes a central figure. Henry was still one of the league’s most productive runners in 2025, finishing with 1,595 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns, but his early-season fumbling issues became an unwelcome storyline. He fumbled four times during the 2025 season, and the damage was magnified because several of those mistakes came in high-leverage moments, including the season opener road loss at Buffalo and the Monday night defeat to Detroit. For a veteran back whose reputation had long been built on power and control, the sudden turnover stretch stood out as one of the most surprising developments of the Ravens’ season.
Baltimore’s opening stretch makes ball security even more important because the Ravens are likely to be favored in several of those games. That means the margin for error will be slim, and a single Henry fumble could swing a game the Ravens are expected to win. Against teams like the Colts, Titans, Falcons and Browns, Baltimore should have enough talent to control the tempo, but only if it stays ahead of the chains and avoids giveaways. A clean start would not only pad the record, but it would also help Minter establish credibility early and ease the pressure that always comes with a new coaching regime.
The bigger question is whether Henry’s 2025 ball-security slump was a short-term blip or a real issue that opponents can target. Henry publicly took responsibility after the fumbles, and the discussion quickly turned to technique, timing and whether small details like his sleeve or grip habits might have mattered. Even so, the underlying football point is simpler: the Ravens need him to run with the same force but with much tighter control in traffic and in the fourth quarter. If Henry cleans that up, Baltimore’s early schedule gives it a great chance to stack wins and build confidence before the competition gets tougher.
For the Ravens, the formula is straightforward. Protect the football, lean on Henry, let Lamar Jackson and the offense settle in, and use the early schedule to create separation in the standings. That is how a team with a new coach can avoid the kind of early-season slipups that have haunted Baltimore in recent years and turn a promising opening stretch into a real launchpad. Henry does not have to be perfect, but in games the Ravens should win, he cannot afford to hand away momentum. If he gets the football under control, Baltimore has every reason to believe a hot start is within reach.
