Tyler Huntley is back in the role the Ravens know well. With Lamar Jackson hobbled by an ankle issue, Baltimore will turn to Huntley for Sunday night’s game against the Atlanta Falcons, giving the veteran backup his 17th regular-season start.
Huntley said on Friday that he was told he would start, and he spent the week preparing as if the job would be his. For him, the adjustment is straightforward. Starting again, he said, feels like riding a bike.
That is not just a throwaway line. Huntley has been here before, and the Ravens have leaned on him before. In 2022, he started against the Falcons and helped Baltimore win 17-9 on Christmas Eve at M&T Bank Stadium. Last season, he also started against the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers, and both games ended in Ravens wins. Baltimore later re-signed him to a two-year contract this offseason, a sign that the team wanted to keep a proven backup in place.
Why this start matters
The setting makes this one especially important. The Ravens are headed into Atlanta for Sunday Night Football, and the Falcons bring a defense that has been strong against the run but much more vulnerable against the pass. That puts the spotlight on Huntley, even though Baltimore’s identity still runs through the same bigger-picture formula.
As Jesse Minter put it, the quarterback change is real, but the offense is still built around the Ravens’ playmakers, offensive line, running game and weapons. He also said Huntley has done a great job this week and expects him to play really well. That is the challenge for Baltimore now: keep the structure intact while asking a different quarterback to manage it.
Huntley’s own explanation for the comfort level was simple. The more he works, the more natural it feels. That approach has helped him stay ready for moments like this, when a backup has to step in quickly and handle a meaningful game on short notice.
It also helps that this is familiar territory. Huntley has now been through enough starts to know the rhythm, the preparation and the pressure that comes with being the next man up. The Ravens are relying on that experience against a Falcons team that will make Baltimore earn every advantage it gets.
What comes next
Sunday night will be a useful test not just of Huntley’s readiness, but of how well the Ravens can adjust around him. If the offense stays on schedule and the game plan stays balanced, Baltimore will have a chance to keep moving in the right direction even without Jackson under center.
For Huntley, it is another opportunity to do what he has done before: step in, settle things down and give the Ravens a chance to win.
