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The Running Game, the Turnovers, and the Same Ol’ Ravens

We never generate turnovers in playoff games. It’s wild. We definitely give the ball away tho.

2 forced TO forced in 8 games with Lamar. In comparison :
Chiefs : 21 in 19 games with Patrick Mahomes
Bills : 13 in 11 games with Josh Allen
Bengals : 13 in 7 games with Joe Burrow
 
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What a shitshow. We didn't punt this game lmao. If we don't turn the ball over, it's a blowout and all time playoff performance for Lamar. And instead people are saying it's legacy cementing and who knows if he can mentally come back? How much mental abuse can I guy take?
 
We never generate turnovers in playoff games. It’s wild. We definitely give the ball away tho
Not speaking to other games, but Allen took care of the ball last night, really never had a chance for a pick. And Cook was wrapping up before contact. More of good effort on their part than a fault of our D.

I know Mark is getting roasted for the fumble, but that was a freakish good play by whoever punched the ball out. The other 2 TOs, not sure what to say other than you just can't make those mistakes in the tournament.
 
There's a reason why we should lock message boards during and immediately after games...

1. With Lamar, I just don't know. Honestly the INT didn't bother me that much, because every QB in the league does dumb shit like that, and it didn't directly hurt us (though all turnovers indirectly do). That fumble is just so fucking bad. Careless, stupid fucking bad.
2. Andrews had a really bad night. The 2PC I kind of yawn at, because it doesn't mean we win the game. His strip fumble was an absolute backbreaker. Changed the entire momentum of the game.
3. Really didn't like the lack of pass rush
4. I hate that this team struggles to force turnovers, though its basically just regression to the mean after over-performing in that area last year.

I guess if you're going to lose, this is the best way to do it. You beat PIT, you didn't lose to KC or get your heart ripped out by losing in the SB.

And finally, for fucks sake:
a) John is still going to be the HC, as he should be.
b) Andrews is still going to be on the team never year, as he should be. Possibly with a contract extension too.

Need to stop pretending like the last thing you saw is the only thing that happened all year.
 
1. With Lamar, I just don't know. Honestly the INT didn't bother me that much, because every QB in the league does dumb shit like that, and it didn't directly hurt us (though all turnovers indirectly do). That fumble is just so fucking bad. Careless, stupid fucking bad.
Lamar admitted he was getting too antsy before playoff games. The fumble was him trying to play hero ball and he got too antsy.

Nonetheless, he came back strong in the second half and we had a chance to win it.
 
Not speaking to other games, but Allen took care of the ball last night, really never had a chance for a pick. And Cook was wrapping up before contact. More of good effort on their part than a fault of our D.

I know Mark is getting roasted for the fumble, but that was a freakish good play by whoever punched the ball out. The other 2 TOs, not sure what to say other than you just can't make those mistakes in the tournament.
Couple key things I saw posted that really hammer home playoff football:

Teams that outgained their opponents in the Divisional Round were 0-4.

In 10 playoff games this season, the team that committed the least amount of turnovers is 8-0. There were two games where there were zero turnovers.
 
Lamar admitted he was getting too antsy before playoff games. The fumble was him trying to play hero ball and he got too antsy.

Nonetheless, he came back strong in the second half and we had a chance to win it.
Well we had a chance to tie it. We really had little to no chance of winning it in regulation at the end of the game.
Me personally... I think 90 seconds with two timeouts, needing just a FG to win, is a spot Josh Allen is going to convert against us a shit load of the time. I think by far the most likely outcome if we convert the 2PC is we lose the game. But obviously you have an exponentially lower chance of winning without it.

The two fumbles in my mind were the entire game. Lamar's obviously directly led to points and stalled a promising drive, and Andrews fumble was a backbreaker. You're driving into BUF territory with a chance to take the lead. Maybe you do, maybe you don't, but even a FG makes it a 2 point game.
 
Ultimately, Lamar may need to purposefully restrict himself. Like right now he plays 100% free. When he plays like that, it allows for some crazy nearly incomprehensible highs. But the other end of that coin is turnovers.

It would seem that unfortunately, good teams are very capable of forcing the TOs rather than giving up the crazy stuff vs Lamar. And so, if Lamar is to be perfect, he may need to purposefully put on some restrictions and just play more conservative football. You'll lose some top end stuff, but you'll be better protected from self implosion.

To me there's just too much data to ignore. We saw a ton of growth from Lamar this year. I feel this is basically the only thing left for him to improve.
 
Not speaking to other games, but Allen took care of the ball last night, really never had a chance for a pick. And Cook was wrapping up before contact. More of good effort on their part than a fault of our D.

I know Mark is getting roasted for the fumble, but that was a freakish good play by whoever punched the ball out. The other 2 TOs, not sure what to say other than you just can't make those mistakes in the tournament.
When Lamar turns the ball over, Tanks says, "What the hell are you doing?!"

When anyone else turns the ball over, Tank says, "Well, there was nothing to be done. The defense just made a great play."
 
What was it, 4th and 2 for the Bills when Allen threw up that deep pass that we got flagged on? As much as anything we did, this is yet another instance of the refs inserting themselves into the outcome of the game. That play, btw, should be in every team's playbook by this point. It gets called every time. All the WR needs to do is slow up going for the ball. If the DEF makes contact at all it's almost universally a PI. As soon as Allen let loose with that ball, I knew it was going to be a PI on us. That TD put them just out of reach even how things kind of went our way getting that last chance.

The only coaching question I can't quite resolve for myself is the extra points. We are marginal at 2 point conversions in the first place. In the Playoffs I feel like we are downright terrible. Not taking those two extra points where we went for conversions instead hurt us. It's why I'm always for taking the points, be it FG's instead of going for it on 4th and 2 or 3. Shorter ones, maybe, but I'll take points when I can get them and by the easiest route I can get them.

Sad, I thought it was our year. No way to predict the errors our guys made. They were just enough to do us in, despite what seemed like a game that we were in charge of.
 
When Lamar turns the ball over, Tanks says, "What the hell are you doing?!"

When anyone else turns the ball over, Tank says, "Well, there was nothing to be done. The defense just made a great play."
I mean in this particular case, he's not wrong. It was both bad ball security by Andrews and a really good play by the defender. If the Ravens had forced that turnover, you'd be praising the defense for a great play.
 
What was it, 4th and 2 for the Bills when Allen threw up that deep pass that we got flagged on? As much as anything we did, this is yet another instance of the refs inserting themselves into the outcome of the game. That play, btw, should be in every team's playbook by this point. It gets called every time. All the WR needs to do is slow up going for the ball. If the DEF makes contact at all it's almost universally a PI. As soon as Allen let loose with that ball, I knew it was going to be a PI on us. That TD put them just out of reach even how things kind of went our way getting that last chance.

The only coaching question I can't quite resolve for myself is the extra points. We are marginal at 2 point conversions in the first place. In the Playoffs I feel like we are downright terrible. Not taking those two extra points where we went for conversions instead hurt us. It's why I'm always for taking the points, be it FG's instead of going for it on 4th and 2 or 3. Shorter ones, maybe, but I'll take points when I can get them and by the easiest route I can get them.

Sad, I thought it was our year. No way to predict the errors our guys made. They were just enough to do us in, despite what seemed like a game that we were in charge of.
The thing is... there weren't that many penalties in the game, and the offensive holding call on BUF in the 1st half was just as egregiously bad as the DPI on the Ravens was.

The DPI was on 3rd and 5 at the 30. So probability wise, BUF is getting 3 points there with a no call. It was difference between 3 and 7 points.
The Holding call was on 2nd and 11 around midfield, that was completed for 8 yards. So it went from 3rd and 3 at the BAL 38 to 2nd and 21 from the BUF 43. Obviously a huge swing.
Whether they get points or not at out of that is hard to say.
 
Man its really rough having a Super Bowl winning capable team only to be undone by costly turnovers and dropped passes.

Not sure what was worse, Zay last year or Andrews this year.
 
The thing is... there weren't that many penalties in the game, and the offensive holding call on BUF in the 1st half was just as egregiously bad as the DPI on the Ravens was.

The DPI was on 3rd and 5 at the 30. So probability wise, BUF is getting 3 points there with a no call. It was difference between 3 and 7 points.
The Holding call was on 2nd and 11 around midfield, that was completed for 8 yards. So it went from 3rd and 3 at the BAL 38 to 2nd and 21 from the BUF 43. Obviously a huge swing.
Whether they get points or not at out of that is hard to say.
The holding call was terrible too, agreed. But wasn't there a penalty on us on like the next play? I said to my daughter that it looked like they were trying to balance out a call they screwed up.

But that PI was the game changer imo. 3 or 7, as you say. Those 4 additional points getting the TD are what beat us, even with all of our errors. A FG there would have left us ahead with that final TD even before an extra point or conversion. And until that PI, we were pretty well holding them and even the FG wasn't guaranteed at that point. IDK, even the pass looked like the play was to play for the PI. It was a blooping rainbow that gave the WR plenty of time to get under it and stop to get run into. Classic Manning type play, where, "...if the WR can't catch it, we can hope for contact and get the yards anyway." play. lol
 
Yes it’s already happening , Andrews fucking fumbles and drops a 2 point and i have to hear Lamar get crucified. Bengals fans saying it was bad pass to Andrews and that any qb could have made the TD throw with all that time. Gonna be another long off season .
 
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