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Ravens Insider: Instant analysis from Ravens’ season-ending 27-25 loss to Bills in AFC divisional round


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Here’s what The Baltimore Sun sports staff had to say immediately after the Ravens’ 27-25 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Sunday night’s AFC divisional round playoff game at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York.

Childs Walker, reporter: The Ravens knew turnovers could destroy them, and that’s exactly what happened, as Mark Andrews’ fumble erased their march to take the lead in the fourth quarter. His drop on a 2-point conversion attempt that would have tied the game then sealed their doom. Just an awful turn of events for a great, passionate athlete.

The Ravens bounced back with fury after halftime, riding their league-best running game and a string of defensive stands to draw oh so close. But again they’ll go home wondering what could have been because of a mistake by one of their most dependable players. Andrews wasn’t the only culprit; Lamar Jackson’s fumble in the first half put them in a hole in the first place. Give Buffalo credit as well for answering all those who said their defense was too small to stand up to the Ravens’ size and relentless creativity. Josh Allen wasn’t spectacular, but he made no glaring errors, and that made him the victor in this collision of MVP frontrunners.

Derrick Henry went 87 yards the first time he touched the ball against Buffalo in Week 4. This time around, he got one. It didn’t matter; Jackson was on point in the cold and snow, rolling right to find Isaiah Likely for 39 yards and then firing a 16-yard strike to Rashod Bateman in the end zone. The Bills counterpunched, with Allen finding Khalil Shakir behind Brandon Stephens for 34 yards and keeping the ball to convert on fourth down deep in Ravens territory. At 7-7, it looked like we had the heavyweight fight the football world anticipated.

Then, Jackson did exactly what the Ravens could not afford to do, the thing he hadn’t done all season, floating an interception in the face of blitzing linebacker Matt Milano. Buffalo had its chance to nose ahead, but the Baltimore defense, aided by a terrible holding call against the Bills, held. Jackson then handed the advantage right back, losing his grip on the ball to cut short an impressive Ravens drive and set Buffalo up deep in Baltimore territory. This time, the Bills converted. The Ravens were on their heels. It seemed they might climb all the way back until that ball popped from Andrews’ trusted hands.

Agony again for a team that figured out so much over the course of this season.

Mike Preston, columnist: The Ravens tried to wear the Bills down with the running game in the second half and they succeeded using Derrick Henry and Justice Hill. They scored on their first two possessions of the third quarter, but the Ravens hurt themselves with turnovers, the last on a fumble by tight end Mark Andrews with 8:41 left in the game that the Bills recovered at their own 46. The turnover resulted in a field goal for Buffalo, but the Ravens still had an opportunity to come back trailing by eight, 27-19. They responded, but Andrews dropped a game-tying 2-point conversion attempt.

Regardless, the Ravens committed too many turnovers to win, several of those by quarterback Lamar Jackson. He should be blamed for a lot of the problems in this game, but so should the defensive line, as well as an inept offense in the first half.

The loss should squelch all of the talk about the Ravens being the best team in the NFL until next season. Actually, let’s not hear it again until they win a Super Bowl.

Sam Cohn, reporter: The Ravens turned the ball over 11 times in the regular season, the third best mark of any team in the NFL. What was one of their biggest strengths from September through December sent them home in January. Lamar Jackson overthrew Rashod Bateman up the left sideline on what looked to be a miscommunication but ended in a pick. Then Jackson fumbled the rock away. And perhaps the most costly one was Mark Andrews, who hasn’t coughed the ball up since 2019 bit spit it up in the fourth quarter. His fumble stalled what could have been Baltimore’s go-ahead drive late. It wasn’t, and Buffalo marched.

But this game will be remembered for Andrews’ goal-line drop on a 2-point conversion attempt that would have likely sent this game to overtime. The Ravens had been so good at taking care of the ball all season, then unraveled in Buffalo’s freezing conditions. Couple that with an inability to dominate the run game — again, as they had much of the year — and having gotten bullied up front for much of the night, and this Ravens season ends short of ending a 12-year Super Bowl title drought.

C.J. Doon, editor: The first thing I thought about when Mark Andrews fumbled that ball in the open field was Taron Johnson’s pick-six against Lamar Jackson on the same field, in the same round, four years ago. That play ultimately sealed the Ravens’ fate in a 17-3 loss, and Andrews’ gaffe was just as gut-wrenching.

It’s particularly frustrating with how well the Ravens were moving the ball in the second half up to that point. It felt like a comeback was imminent, unlike last year. When the Ravens fell behind against the Chiefs in last season’s AFC championship game, they panicked and stopped handing the ball off to their running backs, putting too much pressure on Lamar Jackson to make plays by himself. When the Ravens needed to get going in the second half Sunday night, they simply handed off to Derrick Henry and got out of the way.

What are we supposed to make of Jackson’s performance, anyway? That early interception looked ugly, but it was likely a miscommunication with Rashod Bateman while under pressure. On the other hand, that fumble is inexcusable. Holding the ball so loosely after a bad snap is a recipe for disaster, and he’s lucky it wasn’t returned for a touchdown.

Fair or not, quarterback narratives are ultimately shaped in the postseason, and Jackson has yet to get over the hump against Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes. He’s made a strong case that he’s a better player than those superstars after another brilliant season, but it’s hard not to shake the feeling that the lights are too bright in the playoffs. His postseason wins have come over Ryan Tannehill, rookie C.J. Stroud and 36-year-old Russell Wilson, after all. He belongs in the MVP conversation every year, but it rings hollow with each passing playoff exit.

Tim Schwartz, editor: Another year, another playoff flameout for the Ravens. It wasn’t the egg they laid against the Chiefs at home in last year’s AFC championship game, but it was another performance in which the Ravens didn’t look like themselves.

Lamar Jackson hadn’t turned the ball over twice in any game this season — until Sunday night. Mark Andrews converts a crucial fourth down on a tush push, then gets the ball punched out to end a potential scoring drive midway through the fourth quarter in a brutal turn of events. Making matters worse, his drop on the would-be game-tying 2-point conversion attempt will live in Baltimore lore for all the wrong reasons.

The Ravens got moving in the second half as Derrick Henry came alive, but an 11-point halftime deficit is too much to overcome when you turn it over three times. Aside from two deep passes to Rashod Bateman (who, by the way, deserves a ton of credit for his play this season), Baltimore lacked explosive plays in the passing game to catch up. They missed Zay Flowers in this one.

Going to Buffalo and beating Josh Allen and the Bills was always going to be a tall task. This was a heavyweight bout in which the winner instantly became the Super Bowl favorite. Sometimes the other team plays better, and you’ve got to tip your cap to the Bills. They earned it.

Bennett Conlin, editor: Lamar Jackson is on the verge of winning his third NFL MVP Award, but it’s not much solace to Jackson or Baltimore fans. One of the best quarterbacks in the NFL since he became a starter, Jackson has been a regular-season great and a playoff bust. He’s just 3-5 as a starter in playoff games, failing to reach the Super Bowl despite playing alongside a stellar defense last year and Derrick Henry this season.

It’s hard to pinpoint why Jackson can’t get over the hump, other than blaming Baltimore’s AFC competition. The Bills and Chiefs are exceptional, and Jackson hasn’t been his best in the biggest moments.

Jackson made a few nice plays Sunday, but he also turned it over twice and missed throws he usually makes. In fairness to Baltimore’s quarterback, he saw his reliable tight end, Mark Andrews, cough up the ball during one of the most important drives of the season and drop a potential game-tying 2-point conversion. But until Jackson overcomes the hurdle of consistently winning playoff games, his status among the great quarterbacks in the league will come under question.

It’ll be an offseason filled with hard questions for Baltimore. What can this franchise do to guide its star quarterback to a title? Coming away with zero Super Bowl appearances the past two seasons is an organizational failure.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor C.J. Doon at cdoon@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/CJDoon.

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