OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — The Baltimore Ravens went back to the site of their most recent playoff agony — and once again showed why their seasons keep ending that way.
Lamar Jackson flirted with a perfect passer rating and Derrick Henry ran for 169 yards and two touchdowns, but the Ravens are past the point where any of that matters. Yes, they moved the ball at will at times, rushing for 238 yards on the road against a Buffalo team that was in the AFC title game last year — but a late fumble by Henry undid much of his good work, and isn’t that always the story for this Baltimore team? Excellence, sabotaged just enough to result in defeat.
Bills 41, Ravens 40. After Baltimore had been up 40-25 — with possession of the ball and under eight minutes remaining.
The collapse began when Buffalo’s Josh Allen completed a fourth-down pass that deflected off a Bills player before being caught by Keon Coleman in the end zone. That was bad luck for the Ravens.
The rest of it, less so.
Up by eight, Jackson quickly ran for 13 yards and an easy first down. He’d already had an even more spectacular run earlier in the fourth quarter, backtracking some 20 yards to escape a pass rush before turning upfield for a 19-yard gain. Unless the Bills could figure out an answer for him, the game was as good as over.
Except he stopped running the ball.
Instead, Henry got a carry and did the one thing he couldn’t afford to, fumbling to give Buffalo the ball at the Baltimore 30. Even after the Bills scored another touchdown, a missed 2-point conversion left the Ravens ahead by two. But on their next possession, they went three-and-out.
Henry was stopped after 1 yard, Zay Flowers ran for no gain, and a completion by Jackson was short of the line to gain. The Ravens punted, and the Bills drove for the winning field goal on the game’s final play.
“Did we call the right plays? Well, in hindsight, no, (because) they didn’t work,” coach John Harbaugh said Monday. “And I’m not just saying that to blow it off. Maybe we could have had some sort of a naked boot. I would’ve liked, maybe, if we’d have done that — hindsight being 20/20.”
Harbaugh said there was an option for Jackson to run on the handoff to Flowers.
“That’s a read-option play,” Harbaugh said. “You’ve seen Lamar keep that going forward before. So, in fairness, it was a designed run.”
Baltimore finished with 432 yards of offense, not much different than the 416 it put up in the playoffs against the Bills last season, when the Ravens turned the ball over three times and lost 27-25. The struggles finishing — games and seasons — is a major issue for a team that has often looked well positioned to win a Super Bowl.
If the Ravens are tired of people accusing them of folding in big moments, they’d better get used to it. After a loss like this, that reputation will likely hang over them all season — and nothing short of a Super Bowl run may be enough to change it.
What’s working
When the Ravens avoid turnovers and self-inflicted problems, they have an offense that could be not only the best in the league right now — but one of the best of all time. The Ravens set an NFL single-season record last season with 5.76 yards per rush. Baltimore’s 6.85 yards per play was the third-highest average in league history. On Sunday, the Ravens averaged 8.2 per rush and 8.6 per play. They make offensive football look remarkably easy at times.
What needs work
The little things. At the end of the first half, Baltimore allowed the Bills to go 48 yards in the final 25 seconds despite being out of timeouts, and they kicked a last-second field goal that loomed large later.
Not every baffling decision by the Ravens resulted in disaster. After intercepting a 2-point conversion pass, star safety Kyle Hamilton for some reason lateraled to Kyle Van Noy instead of just taking a knee. Van Noy eventually took a knee to end the play, and Harbaugh was miffed at Hamilton.
“I just questioned whether he actually graduated from Notre Dame or not,” Harbaugh said, drawing a laugh. “That’s what I questioned him on. I thought that was one of the most foolish things I’ve ever seen. He agreed, and it should never happen again.”
Stock up
Flowers caught seven passes for 143 yards and a touchdown after missing the playoff game against Buffalo because of an injury.
Stock down
The Bills have an MVP quarterback in Allen, and Baltimore’s defense had no answers by the end of the game. Allen threw for 394 yards, including 251 in the fourth quarter.
Injuries
The Ravens were missing FB Patrick Ricard (calf) in this game, along with TE Isaiah Likely (foot). Harbaugh said Ricard may practice a bit this week.
Key stat
Buffalo had 15 first downs to Baltimore’s three in the fourth quarter.
Up next
The Ravens host former Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco and the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
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