Ravens vs. Bills Week 7 Tilt Is Best Game Of 2010 To Date

In a 2010 NFL season full of good, but not great, teams, we’ve nonetheless seen plenty of down-to-the-wire contests between playoff contenders with lots of talent. The best game of 2010 to date, however, featured the only NFL team that remains winless.

The Buffalo Bills - 0-5 heading into this contest, now 0-8 overall - traveled to Baltimore to take on a then 4-2 (now 6-2) Ravens team most consider to be a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Needless to say, the Ravens were overwhelming favorites playing on their home field.

Yet early in the second quarter, there the Bills were, sporting a 17-3 lead over the mighty Ravens on the heels of two Ryan Fitzpatrick - yes, Ryan Fitzpatrick - touchdown passes. When the Ravens responded to cut the lead to 17-10, Fitzpatrick lit them up again, hitting Lee Evans for a touchdown to increase Buffalo’s lead to 24-10.

Clearly, winless football teams will be winless football teams no matter how well they’re playing, so it sort of goes without saying that the Ravens stormed back. Fueled by three Bills turnovers (including two Ed Reed interceptions), the Ravens scored 24 straight points - a stretch that included a flea-flicker score from Joe Flacco to Anquan Boldin - to completely turn the tide of the game and open up a 34-24 lead.

But the plucky Bills weren’t done. Fitzpatrick found Evans for his fourth touchdown of the day (Evans’ third), and Rian Lindell booted a 50-yard field goal with four seconds remaining in regulation to send the game to overtime. Buffalo outscored Baltimore 10-0 in the fourth quarter to get it done.

Alas, Ray Lewis ended Buffalo’s dreams of pulling a monumental upset when he stripped tight end Shawn Nelson of the football in overtime, setting Flacco and the Ravens up deep in Bills territory. Billy Cundiff knocked in a 38-yard field goal to wrap up a thrilling 37-34 overtime victory in what was the single best game of the season thus far.