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Some teams don't like seeing the bye week so early in the season, but for Baltimore Ravens star safety Kyle Hamilton, it's coming at just the right time.
Perhaps the biggest surprise through six weeks of the 2025 NFL season is the Ravens being 1-5, mired in a four-game losing streak as they enter the bye week. This was a strong Super Bowl contender entering the year, but a combination of injuries and inconsistent play has them facing an uphill battle just to get into the playoffs in January 2026.
But, while sports talk shows and fans rant and rave over what's been going wrong for the Ravens, Hamilton knows his squad has the opportunity to put together a "great story" with their remaining schedule.
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"There's still 11 games left that we're guaranteed," he told Fox News Digital before participating in a Ravens NFL FLAG clinic with military kids and their families at the team's practice facility on Monday. "So, it's up to us to right the ship, and steer it in the right direction because the season's not over. We know that, and that's why I go back to the bye week. It's good for us just to reset, refocus and hit the ground running when we get back."
Hamilton's first three seasons in the NFL were filled with regular-season success, as the Ravens have made the playoffs each season. But any NFL player knows that adversity will come to a team, no matter what the record says.
So, this bye week is a crucial one at a time when the Ravens can take a step back and assess, individually and collectively, what has gone wrong.
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"Every year I've been in the league, it seems the bye week comes at the perfect time," Hamilton added. "I think that goes to show you can use a bye week whenever it us upon us, which it is now. It's even more needed now than in the past. I think it would be good for the team just to keep it more simple than it needs to be. Sit back and not have to overthink stuff for a week. Obviously, we're preparing for the Bears when we get back and stuff like that, but I think it would be good as a hard reset for us as a team and just self-assess."
Bye weeks can also help teams get healthier, and two key players have been out for the Ravens: quarterback Lamar Jackson and middle linebacker Roquan Smith.
Jackson, the two-time MVP, hasn't been able to participate in the past two games, and the Ravens' offense has suffered as a result of his absence. But head coach John Harbaugh expects him to be back in Week 8 when the Ravens face the Chicago Bears - a much-needed return.
"Those two guys are the heartbeat of our team, especially Lamar. No offense to Ro, he's obviously a big heartbeat of our team. But Lamar's our quarterback, and he's the guy who puts butts in seats in the stadium, sells tickets and wins games for us," Hamilton said. "Obviously, we contribute to that as well defensively and supporting guys on the offense. But, at the end of the day, [No.] 8 is what makes this thing go."
Coach Harbaugh also noted after losing to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday that he believes his team has what it takes to rip off the necessary win streak to get into the playoffs later this season. After all, many players on this roster were there in 2023, when Baltimore won 10 of 11 games before resting their starters in the regular-season finale to ensure playoff health.
Only four NFL teams have been able to overcome a 1-5 start to the season and make the playoffs. But, as Hamilton said, this group has what it takes to make that great story.
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"Obviously, we're not in the position we wanted to be in as a team. But if there's any [team] that can do it, it's us," Hamilton said. "I think that's the mindset everybody in this building has right now. Obviously, players, coaches, fans, anybody who supports us is disappointed in the results we've had to this point in the season.
"We gotta come on at the end of the bye and do what we're saying. It's all talk until we actually go out there and win games."
The Ravens have had a tough schedule to start the season, but their final 12 weeks are expected to be easier based on how their opponents have performed to start the season.
It's different circumstances than in 2023, of course, but the usual "one game at a time" mindset is one Hamilton will have. It starts in Week 8.
"I think it's good to focus on one day at a time, one week at a time and I think the wins start stacking up when you do that. But we can't get too far ahead of ourselves and say, 'We have to win eight games in a row to get in,' or whatever it may be. We just have to win one game," he said.
A change of pace during the bye week can be good for a struggling team, and that's what Hamilton saw on Monday when he partnered with Toyota to help create a positive impact for the Baltimore military community by hosting a Ravens NFL FLAG clinic for kids of service members through "Our Military Kids."
After all, flag football was invented just down the road from the Raven's practice facility at Fort Meade in the 1940s during World War II.
"It's super fun and I'm honestly thankful for Toyota allowing me to be a part of it," Hamilton said of the event. "I know Toyota's been a big proponent of NFL FLAG and helping 300,000 people. I know there's a slogan they like, "All in, all season," and I think it's very true with what they've done with this program and the NFL in general."
Toyota's belief that football grows communities has driven its support of more than 300,000 youth NFL FLAG players nationwide through sponsorships to date.
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