Week 14 Instant Reactions: Buffalo Bills deficiencies show in close loss

The Buffalo Bills lost by seven points to the Baltimore Ravens. Their defense was great but the offense showed how much work it needs to truly contend.

They were able to make it a game but in the end, the Buffalo Bills came up just short against the Baltimore Ravens as they lost 24-17.

There was plenty of good to take from the game as they were facing the hottest team in the NFL. There was also a lot that they need to work on.

Baltimore came into the game on an eight-game winning streak and they were able to take an early 10-0 lead. Even with the Ravens up by two scores in the second quarter, the Bills defense was showing they had what it took.

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They were limiting the high-powered offense as Baltimore had to work for everything they had. The problem was, their offense wasn’t doing much to help them.

Quarterback Josh Allen was off-target early and the miscues led to too many quick drives that put the defense right back on the field. Eventually, it became too much for them and they fell behind 24-9.

The offense then fought back and made it a one-score game after Allen hit Cole Beasley for a touchdown as well as the ensuing two-point conversion.

Once again, the defense responded and forced a three-and-out. Unfortunately, the Bills were unable to convert on a fourth-down pass late and fell to 9-4. Here are a few instant reactions to the loss.

This defense is elite

Lamar Jackson is one of the hardest players in the NFL to defend and Buffalo made him work hard for everything he got. He threw three touchdowns but overall had just 145 yards passing and 40 rushing. They also forced seven punts, which is unheard of for this offense.

The Bills also slowed down Mark Ingram as the veteran running back had 50 yards on 15 carries. And if they could have stopped the 61-yard touchdown to Hayden Hurst on a screen pass, the Ravens day would have looked really rough.

The offense has problems

Josh Allen gave it all he could as did running back Devin Singletary. But it clearly wasn’t enough. This game highlighted how desperately the Bills need a No. 1 type receiver as Cole Beasley and John Brown were unable to get free consistently — although Brown did on the first drive and Allen overthrew him.

That wasn’t the only problem though as Allen was under duress all game. He was sacked six times and hit many more times than that.

In fact, their final drive was all about the Ravens getting penalties rather than the offense making plays.

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Still, they should be happy they stayed this close to one of the best teams in the game. They’re capable of playing against anyone but the offense just needs to find more consistency.

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