Both oddsmakers and analysts rated the Ravens as Super Bowl favorites entering Week 1. They were also ranked No. Multiple power rankings have ranked the Ravens as No.

The Bills, another Super Bowl favourite, looked like they were in the game well into the fourth quarter on Sunday night. Baltimore’s offense was unstoppable as it led Buffalo by 15 points, where they haven’t been defeated in the regular-season since Week 10 in 2023.

Josh Allen led an improbable recovery and the Ravens experienced yet another fourth quarter meltdown. The Ravens were suddenly relegated to the status of pretenders by some fans and analysts.

An annual tradition is to overreact to the results of Week 1. There are voices of reasonableness.

Stephen A. Smith, a sportscaster for ESPN, is one such rational person. That’s right.

Smith predicted that the Ravens would win the Super Bowl at the beginning of the season. Their 41-40 loss to Bills didn’t change his mind.

“Absolutely. Smith stated on ‘First Take.’ ‘I believe in Baltimore Ravens. It’s not only because of Lamar Jackson. Derrick Henry is the reason I believe in this team. You have to pay so much attention to the bell cow in the backfield. He is the most important bell cow. He is defying Father Time. “He is a man in a crowd of boys.”

Smith said he was “a little trepidation about the Ravens” because of the defensive play he witnessed on Sunday. “But that offense, the fear of the combination of Derrick Henry with Lamar Jackson, [DeAndre’s Hopkins] one-handed catch and Zay Flowers playing the way he did.” Man.”