Ravens lose Lamar Jackson in 17-3 loss to Bills, their second straight divisional-round exit

At the beginning of a Ravens season that would defy their expectations, test their patience and end where their last campaign had fallen short, coach John Harbaugh seemed to see the future.

“Is anything normal in 2020?” he said days before the season opener. “I guess we’ll find out.”

The Ravens’ season ended Saturday night in a playoff game that was anything but normal, a 17-3 loss to the Buffalo Bills that tested the limits of predictability.

Quarterback Lamar Jackson hadn’t thrown a red-zone interception in his brilliant NFL career. Then he threw a pick-six that all but doomed the Ravens to their second AFC divisional-round exit in as many years.

Kicker Justin Tucker hadn’t missed two straight field-goals since 2018. Then he knocked his first field-goal attempt off one upright inside Bills Stadium and his second off the other.

The Ravens had clinched a playoff berth, completing a desperate climb back from the depths of the NFL’s worst coronavirus pandemic and a midseason slide, with a five-touchdown blowout and Jackson looking like an All-Pro once more. Now they’ll enter the offseason with no touchdowns and Jackson smarting from a hit that knocked him into the NFL’s concussion protocol and out of the game.

With the loss in Orchard Park, New York, the fifth-seeded Ravens were denied their first appearance in the AFC championship game since 2012. The Bills advanced to their first since 1993; they’ll face either the top-seeded Kansas City Chiefs or the sixth-seeded Cleveland Browns for a shot at the NFL title.

In three quarters, Jackson was 14 for 24 for 162 yards and added nine carries for 34 yards. He was outdueled by Bills quarterback Josh Allen, a fellow 2018 first-round pick and All-Pro selection, who was 23 for 37 for 206 yards and a touchdown.

The game hinged on two third-quarter drives. For a game featuring two of the NFL’s top seven scoring offenses, it took a while for someone to reach the end zone. After punting three times in the first half, and going without a drive longer than 38 yards, Buffalo started the second half by covering 66 yards over 11 plays, the last a 3-yard touchdown pass to All-Pro receiver Stefon Diggs.

The Ravens’ response was methodical — until it collapsed at the worst possible moment, with the worst possible outcomes. On a second-and-goal play from the Bills’ 9-yard line, Jackson’s throw to a wide-open Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, running free across the middle, fell short under pressure from defensive end Jerry Hughes.

On the Ravens’ next play, Jackson dropped back and didn’t seem to notice cornerback Taron Johnson lurking, reading his eyes. Over two-plus NFL seasons, the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player had thrown 49 touchdowns and no interceptions in the red zone. But when Jackson wound up, Johnson broke on his pass to tight end Mark Andrews over the middle.

In a flash, the streak was over. Johnson’s interception return went for 101 yards, tied for the longest in NFL postseason history. Just a play before, the Ravens had been a misfire away from a tie game. Then they were down two touchdowns.

It wasn’t long before Jackson was out of the game, and the Ravens’ chances seemingly with it. On a bad snap from center Patrick Mekari, a problem for the offense all night, Jackson hit his head as he tried to throw the ball away in the face of oncoming pressure. After laying on the field, he jogged to the locker room and did not return.

Backup Tyler Huntley nearly managed a miracle, but it was not to be. He overthrew Brown (four catches for 87 yards) on a sure-thing touchdown pass on one drive, then couldn’t get the Ravens into the end zone on their last.

A sputtering offense and inconsistent special teams spoiled a mostly blameless night for the defense. The Ravens became the first team to lose a playoff game in which they outrushed their opponent by 100-plus yards and also had more passing yards. Diggs finished with eight catches for 106 yards, but Allen was held to 5.6 yards per attempt.

Their defensive strategy was different from the get-go. In 2019, the Ravens blitzed Allen on his first nine drop-backs and rarely let up. According to charting from the Week 14 win, defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale sent five or more pass rushers after Allen on 29 of his 46 drop-backs. Against the blitz, he had just 52 passing yards and took five sacks for 34 yards.

On Saturday, the Ravens waited until their fourth play to blitz Allen. By the end of the first half, they’d blitzed him just five times on 23 drop-backs, sacking him once. Over those two quarters, Allen was 13 for 22 for 120 yards (5.5 yards per attempt) and handed the ball off just once. Both teams entered halftime with just a field goal to their credit.

The Ravens’ special teams play, uncharacteristically, was an adventure. There was a shanked punt from Sam Koch that gifted Buffalo a short field before a field-goal drive. There was a false start from long snapper Morgan Cox.

And then there was the night’s biggest shocker. Tucker was 11 for 11 on field-goal attempts inside 50 yards in his playoff career entering Saturday night. Then, with the winds off Lake Erie swirling inside Bills Stadium, he missed his from 41 yards on the Ravens’ opening drive, and from 46 yards on their fourth drive. The first hit the left upright, the second the right upright.

It was first time since 2018 he’d missed two attempts in a game. Even his first make, a 34-yarder at the end of the first half, sneaked just inside the uprights.

Everything that should’ve been going according to plan wasn’t, not exactly. It was that kind of night, that kind of season.