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Kyle Van Noy is not easily flustered. The Ravens outside linebacker has spent years answering questions in locker rooms, news conferences, even podcasts. At age 34, he’s seen a lot and heard a lot, wisdom that has imbued him with a certain power behind the microphone. He knows what to say and, more important, what not to say.

After a 44-10 loss Sunday to the Houston Texans (2-3), a home defeat that tied for the most lopsided in franchise history, Van Noy stepped up to a lectern inside M&T Bank Stadium. He was asked about the 1-4 Ravens, a team that is not only the NFL’s most disappointing but perhaps also the most inexplicable. Even Van Noy seemed dumbfounded.

What’s the message for the team? “We’ve got to get our shit together.”

Why isn’t practice translating to in-game execution? He asked for the question to be repeated. “I mean, I’m not …” He blew a raspberry in frustration. “I’m not sure. I don’t have many chances left, so I don’t have time to sit and wait. We have to figure it out.”

Are the coaches’ messages not getting through? “Umm, you know …” His breathing seemed to hasten. “That’s probably a question that’s above my pay grade, probably. I think that’s a [John] Harbaugh [or] a ‘Z.O.’ [Zach Orr] question, to be honest. I think their messaging is fine, and we have to be the group to take that, go out and do the simple things right.”

Has the team taken enough accountability? “Yeah, that’s a good question.” He started to rub his left forearm. A brief silence stretched to four, five, then six seconds. “I think I’ll be able to answer that better after the week, to be honest — just being blatantly honest. I feel like there’s accountability, but we will see."

After one of the worst afternoons in franchise history, there’s a lot to account for. An offense that looked impotent without its star quarterback. An injury-depleted defense that was again outmuscled and outclassed. A special teams unit that has found success only in fits and starts. A coaching staff that has wrung just one win out of a roster it was heralding as special only a month ago.

How did a Ravens season that began with Super Bowl hopes curdle this quickly, turning into a weekly game of Whac-A-Mole? No one seems to know. Maybe the problems are too big to unpack. Harbaugh, who before this year rarely had to diagnose the ills of a blowout loss, called the Ravens’ third straight decisive defeat a “complete disappointment.”

“Obviously, got beaten every way you can get beat,” Harbaugh said. “Very disappointed with that. I did not expect to see that. I thought we’d play a lot better than that, based on the way we practiced.”

Nothing about this season has gone as planned. All the hallmarks of the Ravens’ recent glory have abandoned them.

A healthy roster? Gone. The Ravens were without seven of the 11 players with the highest 2025 salary cap hits on their team. Quarterback Lamar Jackson, who hadn’t missed a game because of injury since 2022, was sidelined Sunday by a hamstring injury and might not be healthy until after the Week 7 bye.

Physicality in the trenches? Missing. The Ravens rushed for 44 yards and allowed 167 to one of the NFL’s worst rushing teams.

Opportunistic? Not yet. The Ravens have forced two turnovers in five games this year. Quarterback Cooper Rush threw three interceptions in his team debut.

Well coached? Little evidence of that, either. The Ravens didn’t score a touchdown until the third quarter and didn’t force a punt until the fourth. They were outgained 417-207. Previous Harbaugh-led teams have done a lot more with a lot less.

‘We just have to find those ways to do things better,” running back Derrick Henry said. “I think [in] practice, what we’re doing, we can all get better to hopefully get better for that being in the game. I wouldn’t sit here and say we don’t practice hard. We practice just as hard or harder than anybody in the league. It’s just not turning over to the football field. It’s not a production that the fans deserve and a production that we’re happy about, clearly. I’m pissed.”

It’s early October, and time is already running out. If the Ravens lose next Sunday to the Los Angeles Rams, they would fall to 1-5, matching the 2015 Ravens’ franchise-worst start to a season. Since the playoff field expanded in 2020, only one team that has started 1-5 in a season went on to qualify for the postseason: the 2020 Washington Football Team (now Commanders), which won the NFC East with a 7-9 record. Even in the watered-down AFC North, a 7-9 record probably won’t be enough.

That leaves Ravens officials, coaches and players with a lot to figure out over the next week. General manager Eric DeCosta, who built this talented, if flawed, roster, will have to assess how serious a contender the Ravens can be once better health returns. The Nov. 4 trade deadline is less than a month away.

Harbaugh, who on Sunday again voiced his support for Orr, his embattled defensive coordinator, despite a historically poor start, will have to find paths to improvement somewhere. On offense, the Ravens’ record-breaking rushing attack has suddenly run aground. Their defense, which was missing Pro Bowl defensive lineman Nnamdi Madubuike, inside linebacker Roquan Smith, cornerback Marlon Humphrey and safety Kyle Hamilton on Sunday, can’t rush the passer, stop the run or hold up in coverage.

Ravens players themselves, young and old, stars and no-names alike, need to step up, too. Tight end Mark Andrews bobbled a pass that turned into an interception. Rookie cornerback Keyon Martin negated his own sack with an offside penalty. Punter Jordan Stout followed a field-flipping 61-yard punt with a 35-yarder after a special teams penalty.

The Ravens’ disorder was so galling, so widespread, that it sent tens of thousands of fans to the exits by the end of the third quarter. Even after the game, confusion reigned. Cornerback Jaire Alexander indicated that rookie safety Malaki Starks was responsible for the defense’s signal-calling, even though rookie inside linebacker Teddye Buchanan had seemingly started the game with the green dot.

“We have young guys,” Van Noy said. “They have to grow up fast. They don’t have time to mature over time. We need them now to step up, and the older guys need to step up, too. Guys that have been here for a couple years just have to play better, top down. No excuses.”

Every week, the Ravens’ bona fides look less and less convincing. Every week, Harbaugh seems less and less convinced that a corner will be turned. After their Week 3 loss to the Detroit Lions, he said the Ravens’ run defense would be “fine.” After their Week 4 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, he said the Ravens were “not too far away on defense.”

On Sunday, Harbaugh said the Ravens would “have to look at everything.” Because almost nothing is going right.

“I think it starts with us, as coaches,” Harbaugh said. “We have to figure out how to put the guys in the best positions to make plays and do things right. There were a lot of things out there that weren’t done correctly. So we have to ask ourselves, ‘How does that not translate to the game,’ No. 1. And then, ‘What else can we do?’ What else can we come up with to figure out ways to challenge people and gain some yards and get some stops?”

Maybe the next week will deliver some answers, some accountability. It could just as easily raise more questions about a season that defies easy explanations.