Divisional Playoff round: Ravens at Bills on Saturday Night Football

[YoloinOhio]

Lamar Super Fan, Josh Allen

 

 

[gobills404]

When we slowed them down last year, Zo played 68% of the snaps in addition to Edmund's and Milano playing 100%. I really hope we see more AJ Klein and less Taron Johnson on Saturday, especially if it snows.

[K-9]

2 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

Lamar Super Fan, Josh Allen

 

 

Class.

[Penfield45]

What worries me is ravens got tons of pressure on Tannehil last weekend without blitzing very heavy, they sent disguised pressures 

 

titans oline is very good and could not handle Baltimore’s dline at all. Really hope whoever is in there as an extra blocker Sunday is on their game. Singletary is our best pass blocker and we need him to work his magic 

[BananaB]

6 minutes ago, Magox said:

The Ravens made a highly efficient Titans attack look downright pedestrian.  On the other hand the Browns torched them.    Just like most sports, it's a game of matchups.  

 

I could envision a good defensive game by the Ravens with their good pass rush, ability to turn the ball over and probably the best trio of man cover corners in the league.  I could also see how blitzing teams who play man defense against the Bills have been getting scorched this year.  Sort of plays right into the Bills strength.   

 

It's going to be a strength vs strength matchup.

Titans were too stubborn to give up on Henry when it wasn’t working. To be honest I didn’t think the Titans challenged the Ravens D. Ravens had a game plan to stop the run, it was working and the Titans just kept trying. 
 

It was boring game to watch. 

[Pokebball]

1 minute ago, BananaB said:

Titans were too stubborn to give up on Henry when it wasn’t working. To be honest I didn’t think the Titans challenged the Ravens D. Ravens had a game plan to stop the run, it was working and the Titans just kept trying. 
 

It was boring game to watch. 

Tanny threw the ball in the first quarter and he was torching the Raven's D.  Confounding to me why they gave that up.

[BananaB]

2 minutes ago, Pokebball said:

Tanny threw the ball in the first quarter and he was torching the Raven's D.  Confounding to me why they gave that up.

I missed most of the first, I think when I turned it on they were up 10-0.  So what I seen was just a lot of running attempts and then passing on 3rd and long. It wasn’t working and it was very predictable. 

[Pokebball]

3 minutes ago, Penfield45 said:

What worries me is ravens got tons of pressure on Tannehil last weekend without blitzing very heavy, they sent disguised pressures 

 

titans oline is very good and could not handle Baltimore’s dline at all. Really hope whoever is in there as an extra blocker Sunday is on their game. Singletary is our best pass blocker and we need him to work his magic 

I actually think the Bill's best looks on offense will be 4 wide, with a Knox on the line and Allen in an empty back field.  I think the Ravens will struggle defending that.  Josh will have to have a receiver or two running short routes, but if the Bills can execute this plan, they roll.

[atlbillsfan1975]

17 minutes ago, BananaB said:

I missed most of the first, I think when I turned it on they were up 10-0.  So what I seen was just a lot of running attempts and then passing on 3rd and long. It wasn’t working and it was very predictable. 

The Titans ran Henry into the ground over the past few seasons. Then the meathead Vrabel wasn’t able to see that Henry had nothing in the tank. 
I watched the 10 min highlights from last years Bills/Ravens game. Singletary was getting some good runs. If Josh can just be this years version of himself, we should be good. 

Edited January 14, 2021 by atlbillsfan1975

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

20 minutes ago, BananaB said:

Titans were too stubborn to give up on Henry when it wasn’t working. To be honest I didn’t think the Titans challenged the Ravens D. Ravens had a game plan to stop the run, it was working and the Titans just kept trying. 
 

It was boring game to watch. 

agree completely. It was so dumb. They were “trying to get Henry going” with 3 minutes left in the 4th quarter. I was shocked they just didn’t go shotgun and start throwing earlier. They have that really good 3rd down back too, who they could run draws with. 

[SlimShady'sSpaceForce]

I knew we had short players but not THAT short 

 

 

 

 

[Logic]

2 minutes ago, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

I knew we had short players but not THAT short 

 

 

 

 

Bills official Twitter account throwing short man shade at Beasley and McKenzie. 🤣

[FLFan]

6 minutes ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

agree completely. It was so dumb. They were “trying to get Henry going” with 3 minutes left in the 4th quarter. I was shocked they just didn’t go shotgun and start throwing earlier. They have that really good 3rd down back too, who they could run draws with. 

Agree, it was dumb.  However, Tannehill was simply overwhelmed by the Ravens.  He does not have the skill set to handle the D they threw against him, without a running game that is a threat.  

[YoloinOhio]

 

[Success]

If we end up winning a Super Bowl...is this the toughest game we could have?

 

I know KC lit us up a bit on the ground in the 1st go round, but that was because of the conditions. I feel like both them and a potential match-up with Green Bay would be our passing game against their passing games, and our pass defense is probably the best out of those teams.

 

The Ravens are a different animal.  It's the best D we're likely to face, and they can control the clock w/ that running game.  

 

[CNY315]

2 hours ago, ScottLaw said:

Titans in Tennessee are very good wins.

I think the fact that they only managed to score 20 points is worth mentioning though. The Titans are a good team but they were

 near the bottom in a number of major defensive categories

Edited January 14, 2021 by CNY315

[Seoulofstone]

2 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

Lamar Super Fan, Josh Allen

 

 

 

 It's great to see him say that. They really do have a lot in common. Both received almost insulting criticisms pre-draft. I was delighted to see them both get their first win. Whoever wins , I will be hoping they go all the way.

[Stank_Nasty]

22 minutes ago, CNY315 said:

I think the fact that they only managed to score 20 points is worth mentioning though. The Titans are a good team but they were

 near the bottom in a number of major defensive categories

Ifs definitely worth mentioning. The titans had a total of 19 sacks coming into the playoffs and got to Jackson 5 times. They were 23rd in points allowed at 27 a game and held the Ravens “unstoppable” running attack to 20. 
 

The narrative coming into this game is sort of confusing to me. The ravens hung a whopping 20 points on one of the worst d’s in the NFL while winning by a score. They’re the hottest team in football apparently. Meanwhile the Bills won a game vs a team ranked top ten in both defense and offense and apparently have been exposed. 
 

That’s odd to me. 

Edited January 14, 2021 by Stank_Nasty

[dlonce]

16 minutes ago, Stank_Nasty said:

Ifs definitely worth mentioning. The titans had a total of 19 sacks coming into the playoffs and got to Jackson 5 times. They were 23rd in points allowed at 27 a game and held the Ravens “unstoppable” running attack to 20. 
 

The narrative coming into this game is sort of confusing to me. The ravens hung a whopping 20 points on one of the worst d’s in the NFL while winning by a score. They’re the hottest team in football apparently. Meanwhile the Bills won a game vs a team ranked top ten in both defense and offense and apparently have been exposed. 
 

That’s odd to me. 

Exactly.

 

LJ is the poster child of most sports shows opines. He’s a one dimensional player for the most part. The reasons for the love is obvious. 
Ask Bomani whatever the ***** his name is.

 

They have benefited from a super easy stretch of football and beat a suspect defensive team with a whopping 20 points.

 

They better bring their A game here Saturday.

[BillsFan4]

 

[whatdrought]

2 hours ago, SlimShady'sSpaceForce said:

I knew we had short players but not THAT short 

 

 

 

 

 This trend started with a picture of Kyler Murray... unedited. 

[The Wiz]

8 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

 This trend started with a picture of Kyler Murray... unedited. 

You mean his draft day picture?

 

Edited January 14, 2021 by The Wiz

[YoloinOhio]

 

[tbonehawaii]

1 hour ago, Success said:

If we end up winning a Super Bowl...is this the toughest game we could have?

 

I know KC lit us up a bit on the ground in the 1st go round, but that was because of the conditions. I feel like both them and a potential match-up with Green Bay would be our passing game against their passing games, and our pass defense is probably the best out of those teams.

 

The Ravens are a different animal.  It's the best D we're likely to face, and they can control the clock w/ that running game.  

 

I think Colts was toughest D

[97bills]

3 hours ago, Penfield45 said:

What worries me is ravens got tons of pressure on Tannehil last weekend without blitzing very heavy, they sent disguised pressures 

 

titans oline is very good and could not handle Baltimore’s dline at all. Really hope whoever is in there as an extra blocker Sunday is on their game. Singletary is our best pass blocker and we need him to work his magic 

If they get heat like that on Allen with only rushing 4 it could be a long day. I will be so glad when this team gets some play makers on defense that brings that dog especially at home even with just a few fans this defense needs to feed off them and let the ravens no this is our house 

[Warcodered]

 

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

Good article here. This beat writer thinks the Ravens are not going to blitz much— just rush 4 and simulate some pressure. 
 

https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/bs-sp-ravens-film-study-bills-20210112-vztpyvxxrfay7jjjbldlfyerdu-story.html

 

[Penfield45]

1 hour ago, YoloinOhio said:

 

 

he's right 

 

everyone thinks Ravens will play man coverage the whole night but they won't. they will sent disguised blitzes and play mostly zone and hope their pass rush can get to Allen and throw him off. 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

This must be in here somewhere but I didn't see it.  Ravens Weds. injury report

 

https://twitter.com/SalSports/status/1349465735748349954?s=20

 

 

1 hour ago, 97bills said:

If they get heat like that on Allen with only rushing 4 it could be a long day. I will be so glad when this team gets some play makers on defense that brings that dog especially at home even with just a few fans this defense needs to feed off them and let the ravens no this is our house 

 

As someone else pointed out, it isn't just the "rushing 4" (or 5) it's that Wink Martindale specializes in dialing up disguised blitzes that are special for each team and therefore hard to recognize, and designed to get them favorable matchups for their best defenders.  It's how we wound up with Dawson Knox 1:1 blocking Judon down near our goal line last year, resulting in a strip sack.  Allen was totally blindsided.

 

In a number of games, defenses have succeeded in giving us fits early but we've adjusted later in the game or later in the half.  Part of it is on Daboll, to be sure we've got outlet receivers.  Part of it is on Allen, to be sure he takes them.

 

And part of it is on speedy decoding by our OL coaches and Daboll and figuring out the adjustments we need.

[Golden]

Seeing as Mahomes appears to be the comparison for Josh.

      Below are his stats against Baltimore this year:

     Mahomes went 31 for 42 for 385 yards and averaged 6.5 yards on his four rushing attempts.
       Lamar was not playing as well as he has recently, but the D is the same. 
       

[Hapless Bills Fan]

17 minutes ago, Golden said:

Seeing as Mahomes appears to be the comparison for Josh.

      Below are his stats against Baltimore this year:

     Mahomes went 31 for 42 for 385 yards and averaged 6.5 yards on his four rushing attempts.
       Lamar was not playing as well as he has recently, but the D is the same. 
       

 

Not intended to take anything away from Mahomes, but they do have some weapons we lack: the Chiefs had 132 yards rushing, 64 of them from Edwards Helaire (Helaire also had 5 receptions for 70 yards).  Only 26 rush yards from Mahomes.  Travis Kelce had 6 catches on 7 targets for 87 yards.

 

I'd feel better about the game if Brown hadn't been skunked 0 for 4 and just been invisible.

[Scott7975]

Ravens DC Don Martindale: 'There is going to be pressure' brought vs. Bills QB Josh Allen

 

In past seasons, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was a roller coaster of rifle-armed passes, stupendous runs and head-scratching turnovers.

As Allen has matured into one of the game's best quarterbacks in 2020, the aforementioned turnovers and bad decisions have largely gone to the wayside. A major factor in that has been Allen's ability to stand up to the opposition's blitz and cut down defenses in the process.

Despite Allen's success against the blitz this season, as he heads into Saturday's AFC Divisional Round matchup against the blitz-heavy Ravens, the Bills QB can expect Don Martindale's defense to stay true to form with its pass-rushing ways.

"He knows that there is going to be pressure, that's for sure," Martindale said Wednesday, via ESPN. "That's who we are. That's what we've done."

The Ravens' 45.4 blitz percentage -- including the playoffs -- is the highest in the NFL, according to Next Gen Stats. They've been in the top three in blitz percentage in all three seasons under Martindale -- though their 27.0 quarterback pressure percentage when blitzing this campaign is 26th in the league.

As for Allen, he has 15 touchdowns and just two picks against the blitz this season, per Next Gen. The touchdowns are second-best in the NFL and the TD:INT ration is fourth (also including the playoffs). Going further, Allen's been able to evade pressure caused by the blitz at a 22.5% clip, which is second-highest in the NFL.

What remains to be seen Saturday is whether the new-look Allen can find success against a Ravens defense that previously harried the old (err, younger) version of Allen.

In two previous meetings against the Ravens – one in 2018 off the bench and a start in 2019 – Allen was sacked a combined nine times, fumbled twice (lost one) and the Bills lost both games.

While the Ravens will remain steadfast in their attempt to flock to the quarterback, Martindale realizes full-well that Baltimore is facing a much-improved Allen.

"Usually when you evaluate a quarterback and he's not accurate, it's hard for them to shed that tag," Martindale said. "What he's done in the offseason and what he's done this year is amazing to see. It's accuracy on the move. It's accuracy out of the pocket. Everything he's done, he's become more accurate with it."

In the '20 regular season, Allen produced a completion rate of 69.2 -- just about 10 points better than his last campaign. Along the way, he set Bills records with 396 completions, 4,544 passing yards and 37 touchdown passes -- which came against 10 interceptions and a career-low 26 sacks.

Allen's always possessed the big arm and mobility to combat a blitz, but now he's exhibiting the poise and accuracy to do so. It's paid off with an AFC East title and a trip to the Divisional Round.

The Ravens are coming -- just as Martindale's defense prides itself on doing -- and Allen's going to stand up to the blitz as he's done for most of the season or he's going to come crashing down as he's done against Baltimore in the past. Saturday will tell the tale.

 

https://www.nfl.com/news/ravens-dc-don-martindale-there-is-going-to-be-pressure-brought-vs-bills-qb-josh-

[billsherd]

48 minutes ago, Scott7975 said:

Ravens DC Don Martindale: 'There is going to be pressure' brought vs. Bills QB Josh Allen

 

In past seasons, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was a roller coaster of rifle-armed passes, stupendous runs and head-scratching turnovers.

As Allen has matured into one of the game's best quarterbacks in 2020, the aforementioned turnovers and bad decisions have largely gone to the wayside. A major factor in that has been Allen's ability to stand up to the opposition's blitz and cut down defenses in the process.

Despite Allen's success against the blitz this season, as he heads into Saturday's AFC Divisional Round matchup against the blitz-heavy Ravens, the Bills QB can expect Don Martindale's defense to stay true to form with its pass-rushing ways.

"He knows that there is going to be pressure, that's for sure," Martindale said Wednesday, via ESPN. "That's who we are. That's what we've done."

The Ravens' 45.4 blitz percentage -- including the playoffs -- is the highest in the NFL, according to Next Gen Stats. They've been in the top three in blitz percentage in all three seasons under Martindale -- though their 27.0 quarterback pressure percentage when blitzing this campaign is 26th in the league.

As for Allen, he has 15 touchdowns and just two picks against the blitz this season, per Next Gen. The touchdowns are second-best in the NFL and the TD:INT ration is fourth (also including the playoffs). Going further, Allen's been able to evade pressure caused by the blitz at a 22.5% clip, which is second-highest in the NFL.

What remains to be seen Saturday is whether the new-look Allen can find success against a Ravens defense that previously harried the old (err, younger) version of Allen.

In two previous meetings against the Ravens – one in 2018 off the bench and a start in 2019 – Allen was sacked a combined nine times, fumbled twice (lost one) and the Bills lost both games.

While the Ravens will remain steadfast in their attempt to flock to the quarterback, Martindale realizes full-well that Baltimore is facing a much-improved Allen.

"Usually when you evaluate a quarterback and he's not accurate, it's hard for them to shed that tag," Martindale said. "What he's done in the offseason and what he's done this year is amazing to see. It's accuracy on the move. It's accuracy out of the pocket. Everything he's done, he's become more accurate with it."

In the '20 regular season, Allen produced a completion rate of 69.2 -- just about 10 points better than his last campaign. Along the way, he set Bills records with 396 completions, 4,544 passing yards and 37 touchdown passes -- which came against 10 interceptions and a career-low 26 sacks.

Allen's always possessed the big arm and mobility to combat a blitz, but now he's exhibiting the poise and accuracy to do so. It's paid off with an AFC East title and a trip to the Divisional Round.

The Ravens are coming -- just as Martindale's defense prides itself on doing -- and Allen's going to stand up to the blitz as he's done for most of the season or he's going to come crashing down as he's done against Baltimore in the past. Saturday will tell the tale.

 

https://www.nfl.com/news/ravens-dc-don-martindale-there-is-going-to-be-pressure-brought-vs-bills-qb-josh-

Interesting, Ravens' DC is saying that Allen knows they will come after him. Usually you don't hear that from opposition coaches. I think he might be bluffing, they will blitz but I believe less than the 44% they have it going. 

[K-9]

2 hours ago, Golden said:

Seeing as Mahomes appears to be the comparison for Josh.

      Below are his stats against Baltimore this year:

     Mahomes went 31 for 42 for 385 yards and averaged 6.5 yards on his four rushing attempts.
       Lamar was not playing as well as he has recently, but the D is the same. 
       

Not quite the same D for the Ravens with Yannick Ngakoue added to their lineup since. He can be a force if he’s found his game and needs to be accounted for. 

Edited January 14, 2021 by K-9

[Chandler#81]

Some stats to make you feel better.

(they do me, anyway)

[Chandler#81]

[Doc Brown]

2 hours ago, Scott7975 said:

Ravens DC Don Martindale: 'There is going to be pressure' brought vs. Bills QB Josh Allen

Really playing it close to the vest there.

[Dont Stop Billeiving]

2 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

Some stats to make you feel better.

(they do me, anyway)

The difference between Allen and Jackson's passer ratings is significant especially if you consider how much tougher our schedule was compared to Baltimore's. I knew they had beaten up on mostly bad teams down the stretch, but I didn't realize they had the easiest schedule in the NFL.

 

Slightly off topic, but what happened to Russell Wilson? The guy was the runaway MVP winner for the first half of the season...

[GETTOTHE50]

I hope the bills go 5 wide with McKenzie and really go nuts 

[JMF2006]

17 minutes ago, Dont Stop Billeiving said:

The difference between Allen and Jackson's passer ratings is significant especially if you consider how much tougher our schedule was compared to Baltimore's. I knew they had beaten up on mostly bad teams down the stretch, but I didn't realize they had the easiest schedule in the NFL.

 

Slightly off topic, but what happened to Russell Wilson? The guy was the runaway MVP winner for the first half of the season...

 

The Bills happened to him......we reminded him he is a JAG