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The Beat with Aaron Wilson - 5 REASONS FOR THE OUTCOME
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Posted On: 10/22/07
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1. It was an epic meltdown. The Baltimore Ravens' 19-14 defeat to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday at Ralph Wilson Stadium was typified by a lack of discipline, focus and breakdowns in fundamentals. It was an absolute debacle filled with 11 costly penalties for 91 yards, including a total of five offsides infractions committed by linebackers Terrell Suggs and Jarret Johnson, cornerback Samari Rolle and defensive tackles Haloti Ngata and Justin Bannan. Plus, a pair of pass-interference penalties on Rolle and cornerback Corey Ivy led to two scores. The Ravens were outdueled by the NFL's worst defense and the league's second-worst offense statistically, a team that had just one prior victory. Now, Baltimore (4-3) is left staring in the mirror as it heads into the bye and a much more difficult schedule starting Nov. 5 against the AFC North division-leading Pittsburgh Steelers.
2. Quarterback Kyle Boller was solid overall, completing 21 of 36 passes for 191 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. Although he was only sacked once, he was often under pressure and made some questionable decisions. The play-calling was extremely questionable when the Ravens were behind five points with two possessions remaining and nearly five minutes left on the clock. Due to a combination of short passes, a stalled running game, poor clock management and heavy pressure on Boller, they never came close to mounting a last-minute comeback.
3. The tackling was uncharacteristically shoddy, and rookie Bills running back Marshawn Lynch slipped away from Bart Scott and Suggs on a couple of occasions. He also bulled ahead for 84 yards on 27 carries and a touchdown. Middle linebacker Ray Lewis, who was dealing with a knee injury, had 13 quiet tackles.
4. The Ravens sacked rookie quarterback Trent Edwards twice and intercepted him once as he only passed for 154 yards and produced a 56.2 rating. However, he was poised and did connect with wide receiver Lee Evans for a 54-yard strike behind Ivy over the middle to set up Lynch's 1-yard touchdown run. He didn't appear to be the least bit intimidated by the NFL's fourth-ranked defense.
5. In a bittersweet return to Buffalo, Willis McGahee, the running back Bills Nation despises after a bitter divorce, rushed for a season-high 114 yards on 19 carries. He punctuated that performance with a 46-yard touchdown run where he dodged safety Donte Whitner, stiff-armed defensive back George Wilson roughly to the ground and dove into the end zone. However, he only had 40 yards on 11 carries in the first half as Baltimore fell behind 9-0. He rushed for just one yard on his first five carries.
Aaron Wilson covers the Baltimore Ravens for the Carroll County Times and the Annapolis Capital.
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