THE GOOD, BAD & UGLY: Ravens Choke Again!

DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF: Bills 27, Ravens 25

The Ravens started their 2024 campaign in Kansas City and end it against the Bills, coincidentally the participants in this year’s AFC Championship Game. After a shaky start during the season opener, they rallied and nearly pulled off the upset at Arrowhead. But the effort fell short – an inch short, when Isaiah Likely, who nearly completed a miraculous catch to put the Ravens in position to win the game, couldn’t get both feet in bounds as his toe touched the end line.

Fast forward a little over four months. The Ravens rallied late against the Bills in the Divisional Round of the playoffs, taking over at their own 12-yard line and then going 88 yards in 8 plays to put themselves in position to tie the game with 1:33 remaining if they could convert a 2-point attempt. But just like the season opener, the game ended in utter despair when Mark Andrews couldn’t handle what should have been an easy conversion.

Hopes for an AFC Championship Game rematch with the Chiefs were dashed and now today, instead of beginning their preparation for a trip to Kansas City, the Ravens will be cleaning out their lockers and heading home.

This team will never be the same. Some players will move on to other clubs while new ones arrive. Normal attrition in the NFL is 25% of player personnel. Given contractual situations, the Ravens level of roster turnover will be north of that figure. Many will never pass this way again. That’s life in the National Football League.

Less than 24 hours ago, the Ravens were one of five teams still standing. Things change quickly. The single elimination tournament called the playoffs can be cruel and abrupt. And clearly, that’s the case for the 2024 Baltimore Ravens.

The most frustrating thing about this game is that the Ravens, like they have in just about every losing effort this season, weren’t beaten by their opponent, but instead, by themselves.

The Ravens are the first team in NFL history to…

rush for 175+ yards
complete 70.0% of their passes
average 10.00+ yards per pass
convert 70.0% of their 3rd downs
have no punts or missed FG

…all in the same game (reg or post). They still ended up losing. pic.twitter.com/yJjYf2bTQL

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) January 20, 2025

This is what happens when you don’t protect the football. It’s a postseason pattern that we thought might be behind them. Apparently not and consequently, the Ravens will continue to be pigeon-holed as a regular season juggernaut and a postseason pretender. It’s. a dubious distinction that unfortunately, they’ve earned.

So, without further ado, let’s grind through this edition of The Good, Bad, Ugly & the Paige Spiranac. One that I had hoped would be a pleasant recap of the thrill of victory but instead rips off the scabs of new wounds that will linger for quite a while.

THE GOOD

Offense

We all know what the narrative has been for Lamar Jackson, a repeat MVP winner who sports a losing record in the postseason. And while he shares in the blame of this defeat, I hope that the narrative has at least shifted a bit. Lamar’s mastery and cool demeanor during what could have been a career defining final drive to tie the game, was exemplary. Had the Ravens successfully completed the mission, today’s focus would have been Kansas City. It just wasn’t meant to be. Lamar was 18 of 25 for 254 yards and 2 TDs on his way to a passer rating of 114.4. He added 39 yards on the ground and led the team to 416 net yards of offense in a hostile environment featuring Arctic conditions, 234 yards in the second half.

Derrick Henry had 84 yards on 16 carries (5.3 YPC) to go with a score. Without those turnovers, there’s little doubt that Henry’s workload would have jumped by another 50%…Justice Hill was solid in relief of Henry, rushing for 50 yards on 6 carries (8.3 YPC)…Rashod Bateman had 4 catches for 66 yards and a touchdown. He’s blossomed into a legit No. 2 WR albeit one who is somewhat brittle…Anthony Miller, activated from the practice squad, had a key catch for a first down while Tylan Wallace, a player who always seems to make the most of his limited opportunities, had a great hands-catch while in stride for 27 yards during the team’s final drive.

Mark Andrews had his moments while hauling in 5 passes for 61 yards, but it’s those unsavory miscues that will define his performance. More on that momentarily…Pat Ricard was powerful at times while creating space for Henry in the run game…Ronnie Stanley and Roger Rosengarten performed well on the offensive edges, providing Lamar with ample time to set and throw.

Defense

Nnamdi Madubuike was active with 7 tackles, and he shared a sack with Kyle Van Noy who also made a few key takedowns and added a couple of QB pressures… Michael Pierce was stout, particularly in the second half as was Malik Harrison…Tavius Robinson had a couple tackles for loss…Kyle Hamilton made some excellent open field tackles racing from his safety position to drop receivers at or near the line of scrimmage outside the numbers…Ar’Darius Washington was effective in a similar way…Nate Wiggins name wasn’t brought up much, typically a sign that he covered well. He was active coming up to make tackles in the flat and he executed a well-timed blitz during the Bills first second-half possession to force a three-and-out.

The Ravens had a nice red zone stand in a goal-to-go situation midway through the fourth quarter to force a field goal and keep it a one-score game…the defense buckled down in the second half and held the Bills to 118 yards of offense.

Special Teams

Justin Tucker was flawless, connecting on 2 field goals and a PAT. Keaton Mitchell was productive as a kick returner averaging 26.8 yards on 5 returns…Steven Sims did a nice job to bluff one punt return to slow down the Bills coverage team leading the way to a strategic touchback. He also had a nice return for 16 yards.

THE BAD

Offense

If you’ve read this piece throughout the season, you know that I’ve had concerns about the Ravens guards. Whenever they go up against very good competition, it alters the team’s offensive approach. Last night, Ed Oliver was disruptive. John Harbaugh can sing Daniel Faalele’s praises until one or the other is no longer around, but if the Ravens are going to improve, they’ll need better players than Faalele and Patrick Mekari.

Defense

The Ravens front seven was uncharacteristically pushed around in the first half as the Bills churned out 87 rushing yards on 20 first half carries…The Odafe Oweh – David Ojabo story is compelling. The two share Nigerian roots and they were high school friends and teammates at Blair Academy, a boarding school in New Jersey. The Double “O” tandem was essentially a double zero in Buffalo. They had next to no impact on the game and were nearly invisible save a neutral zone infraction by Oweh on 2nd-and-21 in the first quarter and an illegal use of hands flag against Ojabo who was apparently eager to remove a zit from the chin of Bills’ tackle Spencer Brown.

THE UGLY

Derrick Henry missed a block that forced Lamar to unload a pass in Bateman’s direction that was intercepted; a snap that went awry forced Lamar to juggle the ball a bit before trying to make a play and ultimately fumbling it away, leading to 7 points for Buffalo. “Protect the football” was the mission going into Highmark Stadium. The Bills were +26 during the regular season in the turnover department. Yet Lamar gave it away twice. He otherwise played a great game, but the miscues can’t be overlooked. And unfortunately, they define him as a playoff quarterback. And one last point on the Ravens QB, it seems that if Lamar doesn’t play a near flawless game, the Ravens don’t win. Even when the greatest quarterbacks have had subpar games, their teams rally and pick up the slack. It’s tough to think of a time when that has happened in Baltimore during the LJ era.

At the 6:05 mark of the second quarter, trailing 14-7, Lamar connected with Bateman on a 42-yard strike to set the Ravens up with a first-and-goal at the 2-yard line. Three plays later it was 4th-and-8 and the Ravens had to settle for a field goal.

On the ensuing possession, the Bills advanced the ball to the Ravens 30 with 1:13 left in the half where they faced a 3rd-and-5. Then this happened:

This was called defensive pass interference even though it looks like Coleman pushes off pic.twitter.com/uaxTUpxiiV

— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) January 20, 2025

The Bills would go on to score a touchdown making it 21-10 Buffalo at the half.

Mark Andrews. What a nightmarish performance by a great player who like Lamar, has struggled in the postseason. In 8 career playoff games Andrews has 29 catches on 53 targets (54.7%) for 315 yards (39 yards/game) and 0 TDs. Andrews catch rate during the regular season is 69% while averaging 53 receiving yards and 0.5 TDs per game.

Comparatively speaking, Travis Kelce’s catch rate in 23 playoff games is 81.9%. During the regular season, Kelce’s catch rate is 71.7%. There are clutch players and there are chokers. And as difficult as it is to say it, to write it, to wrap your mind around it, Andrews has choked when a player like Kelce rises to the occasion. There’s just no denying it.

Andrews dropped two passes, one on the two-point conversion that would have tied the game. He also fumbled at the Bills 44-yard line, eventually leading to a Bills’ field goal to make the score 24-19.

It will be a long and tortuous offseason for Andrews and that’s a shame because he’s so important to the team’s success and such a great teammate and organizational ambassador. Hopefully, one day he’ll get an opportunity to redeem himself during the playoffs. One. Day. But if not, Andrews is in danger of going down in infamy like baseball’s Bill Buckner who had a very good career but will always be remembered for the ground ball that got by him enabling the Mets to beat the Red Sox in the 1986 World Series. Or arguably even worse – like Lee Evans.

The Ravens’ worst drop since Lee Evans.

pic.twitter.com/nClrdgf1wr

— Baltimore Memes (@BaltimoreMemes) January 20, 2025

I hate football manpic.twitter.com/W3iJzhH4N7

— Ingravenvids (@IngravenVids) January 20, 2025

COACHING v. BILLS

The Ravens had a good game plan on both sides of the football. Remove the turnovers and the game has a different outcome. But, to borrow a cliché, turnovers are part of the game. The players, not the coaches, need to be held accountable.

But let’s give credit where it’s due. The Ravens didn’t cave. They came out in the second half and made adjustments on offense and defense. They knew that they would have to open the second half with a good defensive stand, and they did just that. They knew they had to temper the Bills rushing attack and then held the Bills to 60 rushing yards on 16 carries after the break (3.75 YPC). Overall, the Ravens outgained the Bills 234 to 118 during the final two quarters.

I did question the first 2-point attempt with 1:41 left in the third quarter and, I wasn’t keen on the play design after Derrick Henry was showing signs of getting untracked on that TD drive. Sending Henry in motion to empty the backfield completely took away the threat of a run – advantage Bills.

Here’s a look at the two-point conversion attempts:

The Ravens’ two targets on their two 2-pt attempts. Just brutal stuff. pic.twitter.com/FcXC55orPr

— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) January 20, 2025

OFFICIATING

It seems as if the game officials temper their desire to throw flags, so as not to be bigger than the game during the playoffs. And that’s quite appreciated. Yet there were calls in pretty much each of the divisional round games that made a difference. Of course, Patrick Mahomes is always a beneficiary and uses the overt favoritism to his advantage. Don’t blame him. Blame the officials. We all know it. He even knows it. Yet the apparent royalty is still treated as such.

But on what planet does this play below not constitute a late hit on a quarterback, particularly when this hip-drop tackling technique has allegedly been outlawed? And, out of bounds for that matter! If Ed Oliver did this to Mahomes, he’d need a Presidential pardon to be released from the Jackson County Corrections Facility. But the crew yesterday saw no harm in this criminal behavior.

Dirty AF and attempt at hip drop out of bounds

NO FLAG pic.twitter.com/P7eYpPrBFZ

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 20, 2025

But back to the officials restraining themselves and allowing the players to play. This call, if ANYTHING, embodies the quintessential definition of offensive pass interference! Yet the officials decided to flag Tre’Davious White instead, setting up a first-and-ten at the Ravens 12.

HOW IS THIS DEFENSIVE PASS INTERFERENCE?!?!

ON A CRUCIAL 3RD DOWN.

THESE REFS ARE AWFUL. pic.twitter.com/Zz4MdcoQAw

— Kyle (@ImKyleMangum) January 20, 2025

THE PAIGE SPIRANAC AWARD

Isaiah Likely does a lot of little things to help the Ravens. He’s an outstanding blocker along the edge whether that be in the run game or short passing game. He’ll hustle downfield to help another receiver add to his yards after catch. And he rarely makes unforced errors that cost his team. Moreover, he has the knack of finding creases in a secondary to provide Lamar with a target when the play as drawn up has failed.

In this divisional game, Likely posted 4 catches for 73 yards. There was the 24-yard TD reception to set up the game-tying 2-point conversion attempt and he made a body contorting catch downfield near the right hash mark for a 39 yard catch to help set up the Ravens first TD.

EPILOGUE

At the beginning of the season when the RSR staff submitted its seasonal Bold Predictions, I never expected the 2024 Ravens to advance as far as they did. I had them finishing (10-7) with a chance at a Wild Card spot. But they showed resolve, particularly after an (0-2) start, particularly after falling two full games behind the Steelers with just four games to play. So, from that perspective the season was a success. But hardly a success from the perspective of Lamar Jackson.

Lamar Jackson is absolutely frustrated and disappointed:

“Hold onto the f*cking ball. This sh*t is annoying. I’m tired of this sh*t.” pic.twitter.com/eEBnoolJ8a

— Ravens Nation ð™‡ð™„ð™‘𙀠(@LIVERavenNation) January 20, 2025

His playoff frustrations are not unique. Other game greats such as John Elway and Peyton Manning both struggled for years to get over that hump – to win a Super Bowl. But Lamar’s experiences while frustrating, are not completely devoid of positivity. His performances against the Steelers and the Bills, hardly flawless, are those of a playoff winning quarterback. He’s battle tested. He’s clearly capable and that 88-yard drive during the Ravens last possession represents a springboard for things to come.

For fans, the frustrations lie in the belief that the Ravens are capable of beating any team. And they are. They just haven’t been able to play mistake free football deep into the playoffs. And as my colleague Derek Arnold chronicled earlier today, the Ravens don’t force turnovers. That equation has to change, or the Ravens will experience more of the same for years to come.

Tomorrow we will begin to turn our attention towards next season, beginning with the offseason challenges that the Ravens face in terms of personnel and possibly coaches. The players will convalesce and prepare their minds and bodies for their futures, wherever they may be. And before you know it, the grind will begin again.

Overall, it was a fun season that featured some highlights that we’ll never forget. Together, we came up short, just like 30 other teams do every season.

We’ll be back with the Good, Bad, Ugly & The Paige Spiranac next September. Thank you for supporting this article during the 2024 season. Hopefully in 2025, we’ll have 3 more postseason wins to analyze while celebrating another Lombardi.

The post THE GOOD, BAD & UGLY: Ravens Choke Again! appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2025/01/20/gbu-paige-spiranac/bills-beat-the-ravens-27-25/