Giveaways Combined with Lack of Takeaways Spell Playoff Doom

This morning, the Flock is once again decompressing over yet another Ravens playoff meltdown, one in which they gave the ball away three more times – just like they did in last year’s AFC Championship Game loss to Kansas City.

Give It Away Now…

Lamar Jackson floated an interception down the right sideline with the game tied 7-7 in the first quarter, but the Ravens defense held, forcing a Buffalo punt. On the Ravens’ next possession, they drove 54 yards to the Bills’ 28. On first down, Lamar hit Mark Andrews for what would have been at least an eight-yard gain, but, in a bit of foreshadowing, it clanged off the tight end’s hands.

Second and 10, Tyler Linderbaum shoots the snap off to Jackson’s left, and the QB has to corral it. In the post-game presser, Jackson explained that the play was an RPO, so with the timing being off due to the bad snap, offensive linemen were already downfield and passing the ball wasn’t an option. He tried and failed to deke Damar Hamlin, who wrestled him to the ground, but not before Lamar dropped the ball trying to change hands. Von Miller scooped it and rumbled to the Ravens’ 24, setting up a Bills touchdown and a lead the home team would never relinquish.

However, one big reason they never relinquished said lead was because the visitors still weren’t quite done giving the ball away.

With the score 24-19 Buffalo in the third quarter, the Ravens took over at their own 30, converted a 4th-and-1 on an Andrews sneak, and then Jackson hit him to cross into Buffalo territory…

you’ll never guess which way he ran after this pic.twitter.com/IsE7S8elDP

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) January 20, 2025

Andrews, inexplicably, tried to shake four Bills defenders, having the ball punched out in the process. The way the game played out, though the Ravens had a chance to tie later, that was their last realistic chance to take the lead, fumbled away in opponent territory.

Jackson vented the frustrations he shares with the entire Flock after the game.

“Hold on to the f—ing ball. … This s—’s annoying. I’m tired of this s—.”

—Lamar Jackson after the Baltimore Ravens loss to the Buffalo Bills. pic.twitter.com/ugwpx4yzHf

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 20, 2025

(ESPN and others seem to be trying to make the quote look like Jackson is casting blame on others, rather than putting himself front and center, which he clearly does if you watch the clip. Typical..)

You can’t give the ball away and win in January. We saw that on full display this weekend, where teams that out-gained their opponent were an incredible 0-4. However, the Bills, Eagles, and Commanders ALL won the turnover battle (the Chiefs are the Chiefs, and win no matter what – neither team turned it over in that game).

But Never Take It Away

Inversely, something that’s very helpful to your cause in winning playoff games, then, is taking the ball away.

And that’s an area where the Ravens have fallen woefully short during the recent Jackson era of playoff failures. Sparked by a Tweet by my RSR colleague Dev Panchwagh…

Pretty much where this #Ravens team has always come up small in the playoffs in the Lamar era.

They don’t make plays on defense. They don’t make plays on special teams.

Mahomes, Allen & even Burrow have had their other units pick them up that way. https://t.co/rcQDCCvYZR

— Dev Panchwagh (@devpanchwagh) January 20, 2025

…I wanted to go back and look at the defense’s performance in this area since 2018.

In nine games, the Ravens defense has forced a grand total of three turnovers, and none since the Tyler Huntley game in Cincinnati in 2022. In Jackson’s starts, they’ve forced two turnovers in eight games, 0.25 turnovers per contest.

Contrast that with their successful Super Bowl run in 2012 – that Ravens defense, much maligned at the time, forced an incredible 10 turnovers during the four-game stretch. While Joe Flacco‘s heroics are not to be dismissed, he benefited from his defense handing him the ball time and again. Something Lamar Jackson has never had in the postseason.

During the KC’s current run of back-to-back Super Bowl wins, Patrick Mahomes‘ defense has forced 11 turnovers in seven games (1.6/g).

This isn’t to say the defenses, led by Wink or Mike Mac or Zach Orr, have performed poorly, or deserve undue blame for the failures. They’ve clamped down and largely kept some prolific offenses and quarterbacks in check. In last year’s AFCCG, KC didn’t score after halftime. Last night, Buffalo managed just two field goals over the final 30.

But championship defenses take the ball away, period. They generate strip sacks, quick pressure leading to interceptions, punch the ball out, and are opportunistic (you know…everything Jackson and the Ravens fall victim to).

Baltimore has too much invested in their defense to be just “good” in January. But they haven’t had a dominant EDGE since Terrell Suggs left, and clearly Ed Reed ain’t walking through that door. The Ravens’ highly-paid and/or drafted stars on that side of the ball haven’t done much…

Kyle Hamilton can be that guy when he’s being used as a chess piece, but as a deep safety, his big-play potential is blunted. Roquan Smith has been solid but unspectacular. Odafe Oweh teased us with such a a play years ago, but disappears more often than not. Nnamdi Madubuike dominates at times, but hasn’t changed any playoff games. Marlon Humphrey‘s “fruit punch” hasn’t shown up in January. Maybe Nate Wiggins can turn into a ball hawk.

On top of that, think back to role players like Bernard Pollard and Corey Graham coming up huge in the postseason, with splash plays that led to victories.

Where’s that been?

Tavius Robinson had his name called a couple times in Buffalo, a positive development, to be sure. Brandon Stephens just gets picked on. Tre’Davious White gets called for a ridiculous PI. David Ojabo comes in, gets flagged, and leaves. Kyle Van Noy has found the fountain of youth, but how long can that last?

Bottom line: with all the (deserved! – no matter how I qualify this, someone will come in and accuse me of looking for “excuses” for Jackson, so whatever..) talk about protecting the football in these games, the inverse is also true.

The Ravens need to start taking the rock away – in addition to protecting it – if they’re ever going to get over the hump.

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