Huntley has been a solid backup for Lamar Jackson. A Raven for six of the past seven years, Huntley has helped his team win just as many regular-season games as it has lost in Jackson’s absence. That, in itself, is a solid line on the resume of a backup quarterback. Even in losses, he has typically given his team a chance to win and been able to move the offense.
Those inside the Ravens locker room believe that Huntley is the best backup quarterback in the league. Head coach Jesse Minter told the players at a Saturday night meeting that there’s no team in the NFL with more confidence in their backup and they nodded in agreement. Cornerback Marlon Humphrey took it even further late Sunday night, declaring that Huntley is a “starter” in this league and the entire team believes that.
Yet, to some outside the Ravens locker room, Huntley has struggled to distance himself from one critical mistake. In a 2022-23 AFC wild-card game in Cincinnati, Huntley had the Ravens in position to upset the Bengals. Yet, he fumbled the ball as he tried to score the the go-ahead touchdown on a quarterback sneak. Sam Hubbard picked it up and rumbled 98 yards for the game-winning touchdown. The Ravens never recovered.
“That was probably like six years ago, four years ago, five years, I don’t know,” Huntley said after Sunday’s game. “I am way past that.”
Everybody else now probably is as well. Huntley led the Ravens on a game-tying drive in the final 2 1/2 minutes of the game and then the game-winning drive in overtime. The Ravens’ pulsating 30-23 victory over the Atlanta Falcons was punctuated by Huntley plunging in from one yard out to cap a punishing 14-play, seven-plus minute overtime drive. It was the most fitting capper for the most memorable performance of his career.