Several fans are burning Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh at the proverbial stake for being overly conservative against the Buffalo Bills.
The Ravens held a 40-38 lead and had possession with 1:33 left in the Sunday night clash inside Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. Facing 4th-and-3 at their own 38, Harbaugh opted to punt rather than go for a potentially game-ending first down.
The decision was head-scratching to some because Josh Allen had been carving up the Ravens’ defense all night. He continued his offensive onslaught to get the Bills in field-goal range for a game-winning kick courtesy of Matt Prater.
The Ravens had also been gashing the Bills’ defense on the ground throughout the contest. Baltimore had a whopping 238 rushing yards — the most in Week 1 so far. The Ravens averaged 8.2 yards per carry in the contest.
Many fans slammed Harbaugh for letting Allen decide the game rather than put the ball in the hands of either Lamar Jackson or Derrick Henry to seal the victory.
There's so much I don't understand about John Harbaugh's late-game management over the years, but … why does it look like he's playing to waste Buffalo's timeouts and not trying to get what could be a game-ending first down?
— Ralph Vacchiano (@RalphVacchiano) September 8, 2025
John Harbaugh decided to have Josh Allen decide the game instead of Lamar Jackson
— Josh Siegel (@_joshsiegel_) September 8, 2025
When is it enough, how many times has John Harbaugh not gone for it when the game is on the line and YOU HAVE LAMAR JACKSON AND DERRICK HENRY BUT YOU DECIDED THAT THE DEFENSE THAT GAVE UP 38 POINTS BEFORE THE LAST DRIVE WAS STOPPING JOSH ALLEN
— Nestor (@nes7or070) September 8, 2025
OK BRO
John Harbaugh masterclass:
— Dat Boy Nice🇵🇸 (@Ryuawful47) September 8, 2025
1. Jet Sweep on 2nd and 9
2. Throws for a 6 yard gain on 3rd down
3. Punts the game away on 4th and 3rd when his RB has 157 rushing yards and his QB is Lamar Jackson
4. Loses the game
The Ravens became the first team in NFL history to score at least 40 points and rush for at least 235 yards and still lose. Teams were 277-0 in such situations before Sunday night’s result.
Jackson and Henry combined to rush for 239 yards and 3 touchdowns on 24 carries. While hindsight is 20-20 when it comes to such late-game decisions, few would have questioned Harbaugh if he put his trust in either of his offensive stars to get him three yards.
