What we learned from Sunday’s games

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Grant Gordon’s insights:

1. Henry sets the decisive tone for the Ravens with a TD sprint: That wasn’t Derrick Henry the freight train, that was a bullet train. Henry stormed out of the gates, reaching a top speed of 21.29 mph for an 87-yard touchdown run on the Ravens’ first play from scrimmage. It wasn’t Henry who mowed down the competition, but rather he raced past the Bills, who remained untouched for a dominant sprint to sixth place. The highlight reel play sparked the Ravens’ loss and began an outstanding night for Henry, who finished with two total touchdowns and 199 yards on 24 carries. He himself ran for more yards than any of Buffalo’s previous three opponents as a team. Despite fumbling near the goal line in the fourth quarter, the fullback was able to make up for the game Patrick Ricard for a touchdown. So as soon as Henry got going, everything rolled his way and that of the Ravens. This is Henry’s second 100-yard effort in as many weeks, and perhaps it’s no coincidence that the Ravens have won two straight and climbed back to AFC heavyweight status.
2. No need to panic in Buffalo. The Bills had a perfect record and Josh Allen was getting MVP calls. Then they stopped in Baltimore and were trampled. In a prime-time battle against another Super Bowl contender, Buffalo struggled on both sides of the ball and Baltimore was impressive in every way. Still, this is not the time to panic like fan bases, media and teams do after a high-profile loss. Proof of this are the Ravens, who were 0-2 at the start of the season and are now back in the top discussion in the league. Buffalo was playing a short week after a lopsided win Monday over a still-winless Jaguars team. The Bills came out fast in this game, but the tables turned in this game as Baltimore scored on its first three drives while the Ravens’ defense stymied the Bills’ top scoring offense. Perhaps most importantly, Allen and the Bills didn’t go gently into the Ravens’ night. A microcosm of Allen’s never-say-die mindset was evident in a stunning 52-yard completion to Khalil Shakir in the second half. Allen fought and scrambled, kept making pump fakes and was 0.9 yards from the sideline when he threw a ball to a wide-open Shakir, according to Next Gen Stats. It briefly got the Bills’ offense going after a stagnant first half. Then an outstanding Ravens defense rose up again. That just wasn’t the Bills’ night and that doesn’t disqualify an impressive last three weeks or hinder them for the next 13.
3. Pssst, Lamar had quite an outstanding game. Reigning NFL MVP Lamar Jackson wasn’t perfect. He lost a fumble and would have had it fumbled had it not been for a phenomenal pass breakup from wideout Nelson Agholor. Henry had the biggest highlights, but Jackson was still a star in prime time. He threw three touchdowns, rushed for one and 54 yards on six carries and threw for two more, completing 13 of 18 passes for 156 yards. In a much-hyped duel between Jackson and Allen, the former certainly kept his end of the bargain.

Insight into next-gen stats for Bills-Ravens (via NFL Pro): Josh Allen was pressured 15 times by the Ravens for a pressure percentage of 44.1%, easily a season high. The Dolphins’ previous high was 30% in Week 2.

NFL Research: Derrick Henry’s 87-yard touchdown run was the longest touchdown run in Ravens history and the second-longest scrimmage TD (Joe Flacco 95-yard TD pass to Mike Wallace; Week 9, 2016). However, it was only the third-longest TD run of Henry’s career after scoring scores of 99 and 94 yards with the Titans.