Josh Allen handed the Baltimore Ravens a crushing defeat in the 2024/25 AFC Divisional Round, a performance that still lingers painfully for the team and its fanbase and one of their players promises revenge on the Buffalo Bills.
Despite forcing three turnovers and outgaining the Bills in yardage, the Ravens fell short, losing 27-25 and watching their Super Bowl hopes vanish on their home field with Lamar Jackson left baffled as to how the win escaped him.
Now, with a fresh season on the horizon, a new face has stepped forward, and he’s not just looking to redeem Baltimore‘s loss as their first-round rookie safety, Malaki Starks, looks to avenge the loss.
Drafted 27th overall by the Ravens, the former Georgia standout didn’t wait long to make his intentions clear ahead of the start of the 2025/26 NFL season this coming September.
“Somebody said who I want to pick off, I said Josh Allen. First game. So, it’s coming. I’m working on it,” Starks said, zeroed in on one of the sport’s elite quarterbacks, issuing a direct challenge.
That might be part of why the Ravens are so keen to use him after taking him 25th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft, expect him to contribute immediately at the levels he showed with the Georgia Bulldogs in college.
In his 2024/25 NCAA season at Georgia, he recorded 77 total tackles (52 solo), four tackles for loss, three pass breakups, and an interception, earning Second-Team All-American and All-SEC honors. The Bulldogs made it to the Sugar Bowl.
So this combination of athleticism, instincts, and physicality makes him a natural fit in Baltimore‘s already formidable secondary and he enters a defense that ranked third in the NFL in points allowed last season, giving up just 18.1 per game.
With nine starters returning and Starks adding a new dimension, Baltimore’s defensive identity appears even more dangerous in 2025 as the organization looks for a first Super Bowl since the 2012 season.
Calling out Josh Allen, who’s coming off a campaign that saw him reach the AFC Championship Game and win the NFL MVP honors, makes one thing clear: Starks is not here to play it safe.
Allen, for his part, enters 2025 riding high off a year in which he threw for 3,731 yards, 28 touchdowns, and just six interceptions so for a rookie to single him out so publicly? That’s bold, but the Ravens may welcome that attitude.
Where to watch Buffalo Bills vs Baltimore Ravens in Week 1
When the NFL released the 2025 schedule, the Ravens-Bills Week 1 rematch stood out immediately. Not just because of what happened in January, but because both teams have retooled, reloaded, and are primed for a deep postseason run.
So where can you watch the game? It turns out fans can catch the action on Sunday, September 7 at 20:20 ET/17:20 PT, hosted at Highmark Stadium. The game is live on NBC and Peacock.
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