Bills vs Ravens Retrospective

Photo credit: Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images

Sunday night featured a huge victory over what might be the most complete and loaded roster in the league. The defense we just dropped 41 points on is no joke, it’s really good. Kyle Hamilton, in my eyes, is the best safety in the NFL, paired with a first-round safety on the other side. From top to bottom, their roster is stacked. The main difference between the Bills and Ravens is simple: we have Josh Allen, and they do not. We outcoached them, and when it mattered most, Josh showed why he is the reigning MVP and the most dangerous quarterback in the league. Holding the tiebreaker over Baltimore may or may not be significant down the road, but in a season where the path to the No. 1 seed is clear, it’s a valuable advantage to have.

Josh Allen’s Performance

Josh Allen had an interesting game. The first drive was decisive and effective, resulting in a Dalton Kincaid touchdown. However, in the following drives, the Bills went three-and-out twice, with the first of those consisting of three run plays. The next series faltered due to some missed connections on screens. Some would criticize the play calling, and while that’s understandable, it’s important to note that Josh was checking into some of those plays at the line of scrimmage. The Ravens successfully won the chess match of getting Allen to check into shorter plays. This is where my criticism of Josh comes in, though how much of this falls on Joe Brady remains unclear.

This sequence is where the game script flipped, and I believe it’s the biggest reason we were playing from behind for most of the game. Of course, the defense also deserves its share of blame. The Ravens are lethal when playing with the lead. But once the fourth quarter arrived, Josh and the offense kicked into high gear, capitalizing on every opportunity. Keon Coleman, especially in the fourth quarter, was the player I’ve been high on for some time now.

End-of-Half and End-of-Game Situations

The end-of-half and end-of-game situations were among the most impressive moments of the game and were crucial to our victory. We outcoached the Ravens when it mattered most, and we were able to finish the game on our terms, keeping the ball out of Lamar Jackson’s hands. The conversation around process versus results can get convoluted, but in my view, the coaching staff made the right decisions, particularly with the two-point conversion. That said, I do disagree with some of the specific play calls used in that sequence.

Defensive Struggles

Overall, the defense was disappointing. Ed Oliver stood out as the main bright spot, with his game-changing fumble being the obvious highlight. He’s been all over the All-22, making plays in both the run and pass game. However, the defensive line was pushed around quite a bit in the run game. Some struggles are to be expected when half of your interior defensive linemen are playing their first game of the season. The Ravens present a unique challenge, so I’m hesitant to be overly concerned just yet.

I thought Bernard and Benford performed well overall, despite some bad moments. Matt Milano, on the other hand, didn’t look great. I’m hopeful that this is just early-season rust, and that he’ll get better as the year progresses, but I’m starting to worry that he may never return to his pre-injury form. The safety room struggled as well. Second-year safety Cole Bishop was embarrassed on national TV when he was bounced like a basketball, and while I feel bad for him, he’s one of the players who should shoulder the least amount of blame on that play.

Looking Ahead

All things considered, there’s a lot of room for improvement, and that’s encouraging. We need to take advantage of our favorable schedule to create as much distance as possible between us, Kansas City, and Baltimore in the race for the No. 1 seed. On to the next!