January 20, 2025
By CHUCK POLLOCK, Sun Senior Sports Columnist
I wouldn’t want to be Mark Andrews.
The Baltimore tight end is one of the National Football League’s best.
His numbers with Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson are ridiculous.
Andrews’ 300+ receptions from him are more than double the number Jackson has connected with for anybody else on Baltimore’s roster.
This season Andrews, 6-foot-5, 250 pounds, was targeted 69 times with 55 receptions, 11 touchdowns and four drops. The 29-year-old University of California alum hadn’t fumbled since 2019.
The reason I bring this up is that Sunday night he had one of the worst games of his pro career. He was the GOAT in Baltimore’s 27-25 divisional playoff loss to the Bills … and not in the Tom Brady context.
BUFFALO (15-4) dominated the first half, leading 21-10 at intermission.
But momentum changed in the third quarter as the Ravens immediately forced two punts and answered with a field goal and a touchdown that made it 21-19 — Buffalo linebacker Matt Milano knocked down the two-point conversion pass that would have tied it.
But when coach Sean McDermott opted for a short field goal that put the Bills up 24-19, Baltimore (13-6) suddenly had a possession that would have put it ahead with just under nine minutes to play.
That’s when Andrews tried on the goat horns for the first time. He caught a 16-yard pass from Jackson that would have provided a first down at the Bills’ 44-yard line. But instead, linebacker Terrel Bernard punched the ball loose and recorvered. That started Buffalo .on a drive to the the Ravens’ 3-yard line and not wishing to fail on fourth-and-goal, coach Sean McDermott opted for the field goal that made it 27-19.
As McDermott noted, “If it had been one (yard) we’d have gone for it, two I’d have had to make a decision, but when it ended up being a long two or short three, going up by eight I certainly thought that was the right thing to do there.”
Non-plussed, Jackson (18-of-25 passing for 254 yards with two TDs and one pick) took Baltimore 88 yards in just over four minutes, throwing a 24-yard touchdown pass to wide open tight end Isiah Likely. That made it 27-25 pending the two-point conversion attempt. Enter Andrews from a second earning of the goat horns. This time he broke free at the goal line but juggled, then dropped, Jackson’s very catchable pass.
The onside kick attempt failed and, for the first time since 2021, Buffalo had a berth in the AFC Championship game against the Chiefs in Kansas City (next Sunday, 6:30 p.m.), which has beaten the Bills three times in the game that decides the conference’s Super Bowl representative.
After the game, Baltimore coach John Harbaugh was badgered about Andrews’ gaffes and he was pointed, “We wouldn’t be here without Mark Andrews” he said of the veteran who had five catches for 61 yards and two carries on third- or fourth-and-1 for first downs.
AFTERWARD, Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who didn’t enhance his NFL MVP chances going 16-of-22 passing for 127 yards with no interceptions or passing touchdowns, couldn’t have cared less.
“We’re just glad our season goes on for another week,” said Allen who scored two rushing TDs. “We don’t want our season to end on a loss. (The win) wasn’t pretty but these playoff games, all you have to do is win by one.
“We’re excited … there’s a lot of pride in that locker room. We don’t listen to the outside noise. People were saying this and that about us and … that we didn’t have enough talent and we weren’t good enough or big enough to be in this position and our guys just continued to work hard … we’re internally driven.”
McDermott added, “The environment that our fans build here every (game) … it’s not like that around the NFL. It was a tough game tonight and there’s a lot to work on in all three phases but there was a lot of good in all three phases as well.
“Give credit to the Ravens, John (Harbaugh, coach) does a heckuva job and they’re well-coached.They made it tough on us in the second half. We were able to get some key takeaways that were important and we cashed in on some of those.”
He concluded, “It was a great win for our organization and our fans. I couldn’t be happier.”
NOTES from the Bills 27-25 victory over the Ravens in Sunday night’s AFC Divisional playoff game at Highmark Stadium.
— The win left the Bills with a 10-0 home record for the season including playoffs, the third time that’s happened in franchise history.
That victory also ended Buffalo’s streak of three straight losses in the divisional round.
— The game’s first giveaway came when Jackson threw only his fifth interception of the season and safety Taylor Rapp logged his third pick of the season. Rapp later left the game with a hip injury and didn’t return, replaced by rookie Cole Bishop.
— The second takeaway came when Jackson juggled the snap fumbled and edge rusher Von Miller took off and sprinted 39 yards toward the end zone. Allen then cashed that possession with his 13th rushing touchdown of the year and later added his 14th just before halftime.
— Bills rookie running back Ray Davis scored his fourth rushing touchdown on the season and seventh of the campaign including receiving.
— Buffalo’s first sack of Jackson was logged by edge rusher Greg Rousseau, his 10th in 19 games including playoffs. Later, safety Damar Hamlin got one by running Jackson out of bounds. Hamlin led the Bills with eight tackles and five solos. Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton had game highs in tackles (9) and solos (6)
— Inactive for the Bills were cornerback Kaiir Elam, kick returner/wide receiver Brandon Codrington (knee), wide receiver Jalen Virgil (elevated from practice squad), offensive lineman Sedrick Van Pran-Granger, offensive tackle Ryan Van Demark, defensive tackle DeWayne Carter, and No. 3 quarterback Mike White.
Among Baltimore’s inactives was wide receiver Zay Flowers (knee).
(Chuck Pollock, a Wellsville Sun and Olean Star senior sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@wnynet.net.)
