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Alaina Getzenberg
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills kicker Matt Prater approached quarterback Josh Allen in the locker room before the season opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night.
“[Prater] just said, ‘Hey, I promise you I’m going to give you everything I got tonight,'” Allen recalled after the game.
Prater told Allen that though it might not be perfect right away, “I’m going to do everything I can to try to be perfect to help.” Prater, 41, joined the team Thursday morning after taking a redeye flight to fill in for Tyler Basswho was put on injured reserve because of left hip and groin issues.
Perfect? The Bills’ performance was far from it.
But Allen, the reigning NFL MVP, outdueled two-time MVP Lamar Jackson and led the Bills back from a 15-point deficit in the final four minutes with Prater kicking the winning 32-yard field goal as time expired in a 41-40 victory.
“It took everybody there. I’m just proud of our team for staying in it,” Allen said. “No one on the sideline blinked. I mean, down 15 points, whatever we were with five, six minutes left. Staying with it, fans leaving the stadium, you got to play this game for 60 minutes. And that’s a really good outfit that we just played, and God willing, we take care of business how we’re supposed to and how we think we will.”
The Bills became the first team in NFL history to overcome a 15-point deficit in the final four minutes of the fourth quarter to win a season opener, per Elias Sports Bureau. The team extended its 12-game home win streak and also won the turnover battle for the 23rd consecutive game, the longest streak in NFL history (including playoffs). Since 2000, teams have now won only three of 2,316 games when trailing by 15-plus points in the final four minutes of the fourth quarter.
Allen led the effort. He threw the most passing yards in any quarter in his career (251) in the fourth and became the first player with 250 passing yards and two rushing touchdowns in any quarter since at least 1978.
“What can’t he do though?” wide receiver Keon Coleman said. Wide receiver Joshua Palmer said Allen was “inspiring” on the sideline.
Allen’s average target depth in the first three quarters was just 7.1 yards but that escalated to 11.2 in the final quarter. The Bills outgained the Ravens 497-432 in total yards.
Prater made all three of his field goal attempts. His lone practice with the team was Friday, but the 19-year veteran got comfortable quickly.
“I’m like, in a dream right now. That was unbelievable,” defensive end Joey Bosa said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been this happy after a win. It’s obviously, it’s just the first game of the year and we gave up a lot of points, and I could be better in a lot of ways. But we got the win, and we gave our offense a chance.
“And I guess when you have Josh Allen, you just have to give him a chance, and anything’s possible.”
Allen completed 33 of 46 passes for 394 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also rushed for 30 yards and 2 touchdowns on 14 carries.
He led the Bills on scoring drives during four of five possessions in the fourth quarter, including the nine-play, 66-yard drive that ended the game. In the final 4:50, Allen completed his last seven passes for 118 yards, including a 10-yard touchdown pass to Coleman that got the Bills to within 40-32.
“We start every practice, at least two of the three practices that we get during the week, with two-minute [drills],” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “And [Allen’s] extremely comfortable in those situations. … When you practice it over and over and over again, you try and hit as many of those situations with different time on the clock, different amount of time to put our guys at practice under some stress. They don’t like it sometimes. They get a little bit mad at me. But it’s for a good reason. So, I’ll take that.”
The Bills’ defense struggled for much of the game, allowing the Ravens to score on seven of their first eight possessions. But on their final three drives, the Ravens punted, had a turnover when Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver forced a fumble by Derrick Henry and then punted again on fourth-and-3 from their 38-yard line with 1:33 left.
Oliver finished with six tackles, a sack, three total tackles for loss and the forced fumble.
Henry said his fourth-quarter fumble — which came when the Ravens led 40-32 — cost Baltimore the game.
“I told my teammates after the game that the loss is on me,” Henry said. “I own it like a man.”
The Ravens suffered their fifth loss after leading by 10 or more points in the fourth quarter since 2019, which is tied with the Chicago Bears for the most in the NFL over that span.
Jackson said Henry shouldn’t shoulder the loss.
“I told [Henry]’Let that go, man,’ He’s [already] did enough for us,” Jackson said. “Things happen. Unfortunately, it just happened at the wrong time. I’m not going to knock him for that. Shoot, I fumbled in the playoffs. It is what it is.”
As for the Bills, they want to keep the win in perspective.
“The guys that showed up, they showed up big and I’m thankful, but we got a lot of work to do,” left tackle Dion Dawkins said. “This is not the Super Bowl, and we got a conference game next week, so we’re going to enjoy this tonight, for sure, and we’re going to put it to bed.”
ESPN staff writer Jamison Hensley contributed to this report.
