Viral pandemics pose an imminent threat to humanity. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, requires the urgent development of anti-viral therapies. Because of its recent emergence, there is a paucity of information regarding viral behavior and host response following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here, we offer an in-depth analysis of the host response to SARS-CoV-2 as it compares to other respiratory infections. Cell and animal models of SARS-CoV-2 infections, in addition to transcriptional profiling of a COVID-19 lung biopsy consistently revealed a unique and inappropriate inflammatory response defined by elevated chemokine expression in the absence of Type I and III interferons. Our identification of a muted transcriptional response to SARS-CoV-2 supports a model in which initial failure to rapidly respond to infection results in prolonged viral replication and an influx of proinflammatory cells that induce alveolar damage and manifest in COVID-19 lung pathology.