OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- The Baltimore Ravens lost plenty of close games as well as star players in the first half of the season. Coming off their bye week, they insist they have not lost any confidence.

Baltimore players and coaches were asked whether they can become the first NFL team in the current playoff format to reach the playoffs after starting 2-6. All of the responses were the same.

“Of course we can. We’re planning on it," coach John Harbaugh said. "We’re very optimistic about what’s in front of us, our future. [We] love our players, love the way they work, love the enthusiasm that they had today coming back and getting ready for Jacksonville. We’ll take it one day at a time, one game at a time.”

The Ravens have a 9 percent chance of reaching the playoffs, according to ESPN's analytic website FiveThirtyEight. The probabilities are based on 20,000 simulations.

Despite his team's 2-6 start, John Harbaugh insists he's planning on the Ravens making the playoffs. Evan Habeeb/USA TODAY Sports

To put this into perspective, Donald Trump has the same odds of winning the United States presidential election, according to PredictWise. In other terms, you have a better shot at getting accepted into Duke (13.4 acceptance rate) than the Ravens have of getting into the postseason.

The deck clearly is stacked against Baltimore, which likely needs to win at least seven of its final eight games to even have a chance of earning a playoff berth.

"That's why it's going to feel so much greater when we finally make it, coming back from this record and the first eight games of this season," cornerback Jimmy Smith said. "Let's make some history."

If you're looking for some optimism, the Ravens play five of their final eight games at home, where they historically play their best. Baltimore also benefits from the mediocrity of the AFC, where there are only five teams with winning records, and the Steelers (5-4) currently own the last playoff spot. (The Ravens trail them by 2½ games.)

"It's definitely not impossible, not for a Ravens football team," Smith said.

The question is whether the Ravens have this type of run left in them. Baltimore has lost six games by a total of 30 points, but the Ravens have not looked like the franchise that has reached the playoffs in six of the previous seven seasons.

The Ravens' passing game has been decimated by the loss of leading receiver Steve Smith, and their running game has regressed to No. 22 in the NFL. Baltimore's defense is giving up 26.8 points per game and hasn't forced a turnover in five straight games.

"We have to earn our way to have that conversation, for sure. But I expect our guys to have high expectations," Harbaugh said. "The standard here has been high. We’ve set a high bar here for a long time, and we’re proud of that. We have high expectations, so we’re not going to let those expectations go.

"We’re not pleased with where we are -- just like the fans aren’t pleased, coaches aren’t pleased, players aren’t pleased. Nobody in the organization is pleased with where we’re at, and we’re very determined to turn it around.”