The 2025 season held many lessons for the Ravens. One was that Tyler Huntley is and long has been the best backup quarterback for Lamar Jackson.
He re-signed with the team on a two-year deal before free agency, and accordingly, they released Cooper Rush at the start of the league year on Wednesday. The move cleared $453,000 in salary cap space wiht $2.2 million in dead money, per OverTheCap.
Huntley was available last offseason, but the Ravens opted to sign Rush to a two-year deal with $4 million that
ensured his spot as the backup. But the former Cowboy struggled after Jackson went down in Week 4, quickly leading to calls for Huntley – who had joined the practice squad before the regular season – to take over the offense. The Ravens declined to make that move until late in Week 6, and they went into their Week 7 bye with a 1-5 record.
Huntley started against the Bears in Week 8 and kicked off a five-game win streak that brought Baltimore back into the playoff picture. He could not close out a Week 15 matchup against the Patriots when Jackson went down with a back injury, but he kept the Ravens’ postseason chances alive the following week in Green Bay.
