The Baltimore Ravens fell to the New England Patriots in heartbreaking fashion in Week 16, as John Harbaugh's squad scratched and clawed till the very end, but fell short.
Baltimore lost quarterback Lamar Jackson at the end of the first half due to a back injury, and the offense felt stagnant in the second half. A fumble late in the fourth quarter by Zay Flowers put the nail in the coffin.
Sunday night's loss dropped the Ravens to 7-8 and put their playoff hopes on life support.
AFC North standings
1. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6)
2. Baltimore Ravens (7-8)
3. Cincinnati Bengals (5-10)
4. Cleveland Browns (3-12)
Baltimore is now two games behind Pittsburgh in the AFC North, and they also don't have the tiebreaker advantage over Pittsburgh due to a head-to-head loss in Week 14. Both teams will meet again in Week 18.
Additionally, there is no path for the Ravens to make the playoffs as a wild-card team, so they'll need to win the division in order to return to the postseason.
AFC playoff picture
Baltimore's playoff chances are down to 11% after the Week 16 loss to New England, per Next Gen stats. If the Ravens lose next week or Pittsburgh wins, Baltimore will miss the postseason. There is officially no margin of error left for Harbaugh's group.
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