‘Super soldier’ Josh Allen proves no lead is safe in comeback win over Ravens, Lamar Jackson (instant takeaways)

BALTIMORE — When Josh Allen led a game-tying drive in the third quarter Sunday afternoon against the Baltimore Ravens, ESPN’s Mina Kimes summed it up:

“That was a Josh Allen Super Soldier drive,” Kimes wrote on Twitter.

That drive anchored a come-from-behind victory for the Bills, who beat the Ravens 23-20 at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday.

Allen was off the mark in the first half, but came surging back in the second half to lead the Bills to a critical AFC win over the Ravens. Buffalo scored 20 unanswered points after getting held to just a field goal in the first half. The Ravens scored their last points with 3:44 remaining in the second quarter.

Allen had two of his best runs of the game on that game-tying drive. The first was when he turned himself into a heat-seeking missile, welcoming contact as he took on defenders for a few extra yards. The second came on a nifty bootleg that sent him outside to the left for a touchdown.

The Bills had at least seven drops in the game on passes from Allen. A few can be blamed on the rain, but the pass catchers needed to do a better job helping out their quarterback.

Allen finished the game with just a 52.8 completion percentage and threw for 213 yards with a touchdown and one interception. Lamar Jackson had just 144 yards through the air and finished with a touchdown pass and two interceptions.

The Bills finally get a win in a one-score game. They had lost their last seven one-score games before taking out the Ravens on a game-winning field goal from Tyler Bass as time expired.

Pay Poyer?

The Bills and All Pro safety Jordan Poyer have been in a contract stalemate since negotiations for a new deal began earlier this summer.

On Sunday Poyer reminded the world how valuable he truly is for a Bills defense that clamped down on Lamar Jackson in the second half.

Poyer had two interceptions in the fourth quarter to fuel the Bills’ comeback win over the Ravens. The first one was on a pass tipped by rookie defensive tackle Prince Emili, who is playing for injured starter Ed Oliver. Emili is up from Buffalo’s practice squad and he tipped a Jackson pass at the line of scrimmage. Poyer came flying in to secure the interception.

The second came on what was looking like a back-breaking drive from the Ravens. Jackson drove the ball nearly the length of the field from his own 4-yard line before getting pressured by Shaq Lawson on 4th and short. Jackson was back-peddling away from the rush and threw it to the back corner of the end zone, where Poyer was waiting.

There’s little doubt that having Poyer available helped settle the Bills defense after a shaky start. Poyer started opposite second-year safety Damar Hamlin, who got the nod over Jaqaun Johnson after the two young safeties started alongside each other a week ago.

Matt Milano was Bills’ defensive MVP

Milano led all players in the game with 13 total tackles and was one of the best Bills defenders against the run. He had two tackles for a loss and was in on several key stops against Jackson, who finished with 73 yards on the ground. Milano almost had an interception in the second quarter against Jackson, but tight end Mark Andrews came flying into the play and came away with a crazy reception after Jackson somehow evaded a Von Miller sack.

Bills get glimpse of effective run game

The Bills got things going in the second half and looked the best they’ve looked on the ground by getting the ball to Devin Singletary. He had a fumble in the first half but he came back strong down the stretch with a couple key runs to keep drives moving. Singletary finished with 11 carries for 49 yards and averaged a respectable 4.5 yards per carry. Allen still led the Bills on the ground with 70 yards.

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