Ravens' Lamar Jackson Explains Controversial Late-Game Decision

Lamar Jackson and his Baltimore Ravens had a tough choice to make entering the final minute and a half of their season opening-showdown against the Buffalo Bills.

The Bills had all of the momentum they could have asked for, coming back from the dead with 13 quick points to capitalize on the stalling Baltimore defense. Josh Allen had dragged his team from down 15 into a two-point game, but the Ravens had a chance to extend their waning deficit with their own attempt at a response.

Jackson's offense couldn't get much going, with their biggest third-down drive of the night ending up with a throw to Zay Flowers that was short of the sticks, and he was pulled down three yards clear of a fresh set of downs. The Ravens could have gone for it, providing their perennial MVP candidate of a quarterback with a chance to call his own number, or give it right back to the charging Bills and plenty of time to get within field goal range. They chose to punt, and that sealed their fate.

That late-game decision, which would conclude the Ravens' final drive before their eventual last-second 41-40 loss, stood out as one of the strangest calls of the night.

Sep 7, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) runs with the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the second quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Head coach John Harbaugh naturally absorbed much of the early blame, having stood at the center of countless Baltimore blown leads, but Jackson shed some light on the situation postgame that provided a disappointing answer to the confounding question.

"I was cramping, so that's why I pretty much jogged off the field," Jackson clarified in his postgame interview. "If I wasn't, I believe everyone in here know I would have been trying to go for it [on] 4th and 3."

Ravens fans may take solace in Jackson's ill-timed cramps, indicating that this was an instance of unfortunate timing as opposed to questionable game-management, but this just marks another instance in which, for some reason, he couldn't come through (this wouldn't be the first time his body interfered with his in-game presence, either, for those who remember Poop Gate).

Fair or not, that narrative will continue haunting the Ravens' star as long as he goes Super Bowl-less, having yet to appear in the big game by this point in the career, let alone winning the whole thing. His Ravens have collapsed at more turns than seemingly every other team in the league, and just like he's had to watch Patrick Mahomes and his Kansas City Chiefs stand victorious at the NFL's summit, Allen's Bills have once again gotten the better of Jackson and his team.

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