ExtremeRavens Posted yesterday at 05:47 AM Posted yesterday at 05:47 AM Ninety-nine percent of Sunday night was a reminder of how lucky the Ravens are to have Derrick Henry. He broke several rushing records, scampered for two touchdowns and carried Baltimore’s offense for the majority of the game. But most people aren’t going to remember Henry’s historic performance. Instead, it’ll be his only blemish — a fourth-quarter fumble that preceded the Ravens’ historic collapse in their 41-40 season-opening loss to the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, New York. “I gotta take care of the ball. I told my teammates after the game to put the loss on me,” Henry said. Henry dominated before that costly mistake. He tallied more than 150 rushing yards and averaged more than 9 yards per carry. It felt as though almost every time Henry touched the ball, he reached the second and sometimes third level of the Bills’ defense. He ran untouched on his 46-yard fourth-quarter touchdown. With Baltimore up eight points and 3:10 left on the clock, it turned to Henry. Then Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver quickly penetrated into the backfield and got his arms around the running back. He ripped at the ball and forced Henry to fumble, leading to a Buffalo recovery and ensuing touchdown. That play wasn’t the ultimate deciding factor in Sunday’s game, though. The Ravens’ defense allowed 497 total yards after saying all week how prepared they felt entering the first game. Newly signed cornerback Jaire Alexander was relentlessly targeted in the fourth quarter, surrendering chunk play after chunk play. Rookie kicker Tyler Loop missed an extra point attempt. “When the offense puts up 40 points, no way we should be in that position,” safety Kyle Hamilton said. Some of those plays are understandable. Bills quarterback Josh Allen is the reigning NFL Most Valuable Player and Buffalo has built a stellar surrounding cast around him. The Bills have one of the best late-game offenses in football and have played in tight, intense games throughout Allen’s tenure. That’s why Henry’s fumble came as a complete shock. He’s one of the best running backs in NFL history at protecting the football, fumbling just 21 times on 2,373 career carries. That means that every time Henry totes the rock, he has a 0.88% chance of coughing it up. “If I take care of the ball, I feel like it’d be a different situation,” Henry said. Ravens running back Derrick Henry fumbles the ball as he is hit by Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver in the fourth quarter Sunday in Orchard Park, New York. (Jeffrey T. Barnes/AP) Just like tight end Mark Andrews’ drop on a 2-point conversion attempt in the postseason, it was one of Baltimore’s most reliable players letting it down in the game’s final moments. Since 2021, the Ravens have lost eight games in which they had a win probability of at least 90% at one point during the game, according to ESPN’s Benjamin Solak. That’s three more than the next closest team. “You got to make plays to get off the field and you got to stay on the field,” coach John Harbaugh said. It’s the first game Baltimore has lost when Henry has rushed for more than 100 yards. In a contest that featured so many offensive fireworks, Henry reminded everyone that he’s one of the greatest running backs of this generation. He finished the second quarter with more than 100 yards for the sixth time in his career, which is tied for the second-most such performances in the NFL since 1991. Henry’s 107 career rushing touchdowns moved him to sixth all-time, passing Hall of Famer Jim Brown. He tied Walter Payton for the most 150-yard rushing games by a running back at least 30 years old. It was the seventh time that he’s rushed for that many yards in the past two seasons. Henry shouldn’t be this good. Not when he’s 31 years old — an age that running backs typically fall off a cliff — or when he’s accumulated more than 4,000 carries in his football career spanning high school, college and the NFL. But the veteran continues to redefine the position. It’s a cruel twist that his performance Sunday ended with him taking responsibility not for a defining road win over a fellow Super Bowl contender, but for a devastating loss that he’ll carry the weight of himself. Have a news tip? Contact Sam Jane at sjane@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/Sam_Jane230. View the full article Quote
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