OTL: Numb

They failed. Plain and simple. “Close” just isn’t good enough. All “close” got the Ravens was another early postseason exit with one of the most talented quarterbacks to ever play the game. Lamar Jackson remains without a signature postseason win, though this one wasn’t really his fault was it?

Mark Andrews. As boneheaded of a fumble that you’ll ever see, and a drop Baltimore fans haven’t seen since Lee Evans in the 2011 AFC Championship game. Just an absolutely brutal sequence of events for one of the best tight ends in football. He wasn’t good enough. While I don’t agree with the Ravens hiding him from the media (ultimately all that does is make things worse) I understand why they did it.

One talking point that’s been bandied about in recent days is the defense’s inability to create turnovers, and yes, the numbers look rather bad. I think fingering any portion of the blame towards the defense for the loss in Buffalo is missing the plot entirely.

The Bills scored six points in the second half on Sunday night. That’s all. In the AFC Championship game last year, the Ravens defense shut out the Chiefs in the second half. What happened in those two games?

Zay Flowers’ fumble and Lamar’s pick in the fourth quarter against Kansas City… Andrews’ fumble and drop against Buffalo… There’s a postseason turnover in Baltimore, just on the other side of the ball.

Speaking of turnovers, Lamar’s two in Buffalo were bad. Just completely unforced and needless. I thought we moved on from Lamar playing hero ball?

I don’t like ragging on Lamar. The faces in the national media do enough of that to last a lifetime. I do it because I know how great he is, and the standard for a Quarterback as phenomenal as Lamar is higher. He needed to be great to win that game. And he was, for the last few drives. Josh Allen wasn’t great in that game either, but you know what he didn’t do? He didn’t turn the ball over, certainly not twice.

Nobody is getting singled out. The players who are getting paid top guy money need to play like top guys in the postseason against the Buffalo’s and the Kansas City’s. The Ravens didn’t get that this time around, nor have they in recent years.

Unfortunately, this recent exit leaves a massive dark cloud hanging over the Ravens: If not now, if not last season, then when are they going to win another Super Bowl? 2023 was their best shot, and they went out with a whimper. Patrick Mahomes is playing some rather mid football this season; can they expect more of that next year? Probably not.

Lamar’s about to win a third MVP, and after that loss to the Bills, I really just don’t care. I don’t think Lamar does either. Pro bowl, All-Pro, MVP, I really just don’t care anymore. All any of it means is that the Ravens have really good regular seasons, which we already know.

Ok, enough negativity.

Because I’m a naive idiot, I have high hopes for next year, because I genuinely believe that this team is so, so close to the final goal. If the coaching staff remains intact, which by all appearances it will this time around, the Ravens will have continuity for 2025-26. Another year in Todd Monken’s offense for Lamar, and hopefully we won’t have to watch the worst defense in football for the first half of the season.

But, until the Ravens beat Buffalo and/or Kansas City in January, all the regular season wins in the world mean nothing.

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