The Ugly:
The Baltimore Ravens were enjoying a 24-9 point lead in the fourth quarter when the Buffalo Bills were able to get back into the game. After a long drive that ended in a touchdown and a two point conversion, the Bills were down just seven with seven minutes left on the game clock. The Ravens had two silly penalties as the Bills were approaching the goal line. First there was Chuck Clark getting caught in the backfield as the ball was snapped. Then the Ravens had too many players on the field. The Bills scored on a play where an illegal pick could have been called. On the two point conversion the Bills scored on basically the same play. It was too easy. The game got too close for comfort.
On the next possession the Ravens were forced to punt quickly. The entirety of the momentum was with the Bills. With 5:27 to go the Bills had a chance to undo all the work the Ravens did in the game. It was almost like a brand new ball game. Michael Pierce had a tough to defend personal foul penalty. The Bills got 15 free yards. Jaylon Ferguson got a personal foul of his own on the next play. That’s 30 free yards for the Bills in one of the most pivotal moments of the game. That’s inexcusable football for a 10-2 team, for any team. Then a pass interference penalty gave the Bills the ball in striking position.
The Ravens flirted with disaster, in fact they did a slow dance to it. The Ravens won the game but it was way too close. It was way too dramatic considering they led the whole way. The ugly part of this game wasn’t hard to find this week. It was the chain of events that made the Ravens Flock very tense on this December Sunday.