ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — As the Ravens wrapped up mandatory minicamp in June, Pro Bowl cornerback Marlon Humphrey told the media he wanted Ravens football to get back to when it was “all about the defense.”

“I want the Ravens’ identity to be defense like it was when I first got here, so that’s something that we’re chirping in our room,” Humphrey said.

And “chirp” they did, all offseason, saying how they want to bring back the “standard,” how they want to be feared, how they want to emphasize turnovers and be more like the 2000s team.

“I was unaware of how elite that 2000 Ravens defense was, and when I was watching some of those playoff games, you didn’t really need an offense, honestly,” Humphrey said.

But, in their first chance to show what this 2025 defense is all about with a Week 1 rematch against the Buffalo Bills, the Ravens fell far short of being good enough to go without Lamar Jackson and the electric offense.

Granted, they were playing reigning MVP quarterback Josh Allen, who was guarded by one of the top offensive lines in the league.

But, in every opportunity they had to be clutch, they failed. They canceled out every good play with a mistake — as evidenced by the first drive and the last drive of the first half.

On the opening series, after linebacker Trenton Simpson and outside linebacker Tavius Robinson stuffed a screen pass for a loss of a yard on first down, Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid split safeties Kyle Hamilton and Malaki Starks for a 15-yard touchdown.

Outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy said the Bills jumped on them quickly, but they settled down after that. However, they needed the offense to stay ahead of what the Bills were doing to them.

This was especially true after the defense flushed Allen out of the pocket on the final drive of the first half but allowed him enough time to find wide receiver Khalil Shakir for a 26-yard completion. That gave them a chance to kick a field goal before the half, bringing the score to 20-10.

“I think it was just [pass] rush and coverage didn’t marry up good enough to finish and close out the game,” Van Noy said. “Sometimes a pass rusher would win and get the ball out 5 yards ... or pass rush wasn’t good enough and be able to have time.”

Even with the leaky secondary and the lack of pressure on Allen, the Ravens were up 40-25 in the fourth quarter. Then running back Derrick Henry fumbled. The defense immediately allowed a 29-yard pass to give the Bills a first down at the 1-yard line, leading to a touchdown.

Things fell apart from there. But the defense had one last chance to protect the lead.

With 1:30 seconds left, the Bills took over at their own 20, down 40-38. The Ravens simply had to keep them out of field goal range. It took the Bills just four plays to get there.

And so the Ravens lost 41-40. They gave up 497 yards (65 more than their offense accumulated) and had just one sack and no takeaways.

Jackson still gave them his vote of confidence.

“It was the first game of the season,” he said. “I’m going to be surprised, just because I feel like our defense is the best in the league, but everything’s not going to be perfect. Like I said, it’s the beginning of the season. We have a lot of season left.”

However, Humphrey was one of the first players to leave the locker room before he could face questions.

Henry tried to take the blame. But defensive lineman Broderick Washington said he felt this one rested on the defense’s shoulders.

“We’ve got to close out on defense,” Washington said. “I don’t care what happened on the offensive side of the ball. The defense’s got to finish the game.”

Washington said he felt the Ravens gave up too many rushing yards. The Bills finished with 108 and averaged 3.5 yards per carry. Last season, the Ravens’ run defense gave up more than 100 yards in only five games, including 147 to the Bills in the AFC divisional round.

But the secondary gave up even more yardage. Allen finished with 394 passing yards — a stat that made Hamilton want to throw up, he said.

This year’s secondary is packed with talent, featuring five first-round draft picks and three Pro Bowlers. But last year’s secondary was supposed to be talented, too, and it struggled through the beginning of the season. The key to righting the ship? Communication.

And yet players from the defensive line to the secondary said the communication seemed to be running smoothly this time.

Washington pointed out the core of last year’s defense returned, and he said (without seeing the film) he felt the rookies blended in seamlessly.

The Ravens gave Allen kudos — he made plays under pressure. They also were the victim of a lot of “janky” plays, as cornerback Chidobe Awuzie called them, including a pass deflecting off the intended receiver into a teammate’s hands for a touchdown.

The biggest difference in being able to finish, however, came down to the small details.

“I feel like we gave them a lot of things,” Awuzie said. He’s new to the team so maybe he doesn’t know, but that’s a refrain that’s been sung before.

Hamilton, who was a key part of the secondary’s turnaround last season, was at a loss for why the defense struggled . He said they’re “banging our heads on the wall about it.”

“We talked about it all offseason how we struggled last season at the beginning,” Hamilton said. “Then [we said], ‘It’s a new year, and it’s a new team,’ and then we come out here and do that. We are saying the same things. Well, we are saying something different, but we are doing the same things. I don’t know if there is something mentally that we have to get over or if there is a mental block, but I looked up at the scoreboard when they were about to kick the field goal, and it said they had 400 passing yards or something. I’m about to throw up on the field.”