Bill Simmons exposes ugly truth on Ravens' recurring issue under John Harbaugh after heartbreaking loss to Bills

John Harbaugh and the Baltimore Ravens ran into another primetime wall this past weekend. Holding a 40-25 lead in the fourth quarter against the Buffalo Bills, the Ravens let the game slip from their fingers, surrendering a walk-off field goal from Matt Prater to lose 41-40.

The loss marked yet another collapse in a big game. This has been a concerning pattern over the last half-decade, approximately, where the team has become notorious for failing to close out important games, especially in the playoffs.

Bill Simmons underscored this theme again on Sunday's episode of "The Bill Simmons Podcast."

"I'm just traumatized by that game," he said. "I had Ravens at -1.5. I marked it up to win. Bills fans leaving the stadium. Ravens, I think, had at least 10-20 plus-yard plays. And yet again, they proved why they are the hardened rockets.

"It all looks great. Lots of stats, lots of points, and yet you can't trust them in moments like this. I'm sure it'll be fine. We'll forget this game 15 weeks from now."

Simmons's mention of stats and points is certainly merited. The Ravens' loss saw quarterback Lamar Jackson record 209 passing yards and two touchdowns, as he completed 73.7% of his throws. Derrick Henry rushed for 169 yards and two touchdowns, and Jackson also ran for 70 and one score. Meanwhile, Zay Flowers put up 143 receiving yards and one score.

However, despite the impressive stat lines, Baltimore still fell short on the road.

Looking back at another famous Ravens defeat

While there are a number of well-known defeats, one that stands tall as a prime example of the theme that Bill Simmons underscored is the 2022 AFC wild card round. The Cincinnati Bengals hosted the Ravens at Paycor Stadium in January.

While Lamar Jackson was unavailable, quarterback Tyler Huntley kept things close.

The Ravens entered the halftime locker room being only down 10-9. Huntley put up a solid showing throughout, carrying Baltimore into the fourth quarter at 17-17.

However, the wheels came off early in the final period, when a goalline fumble by the Ravens resulted in Bengals star Sam Hubbard taking it to the house for seven.

Baltimore never recovered and lost the game 24-17.

With the latest loss to Buffalo, John Harbaugh and company will look to turn things around for the rest of the season. They face the Cleveland Browns in Week 2 in a game they're largely expected to win at home.