I absolutely can not sleep. Tomorrow morning, we are going to Buffalo, NY, to watch my Baltimore Ravens walk into the home of the Bills and play the game of the year to advance to the conference championship.
For years, I have heard about Buffalo's legendary tailgates, dreamed of attending a game in the snow, and thought about following my team through the playoffs. Tomorrow, it all comes to life. At 6 a.m. Sunday morning, I am boarding a party bus from Baltimore, Maryland, to Buffalo, NY, to cheer on our Ravens and, most importantly, cash some bets in person.
When the alarm sounded at 5 a.m., I couldn’t rise faster. Immediately, I was gathering my layers and suiting up for the day. The forecast in Buffalo today is calling for 10 degrees and snow. After suiting up with more layers than a mille-feuille, I could finally roll myself out to the elements. 2 pairs of socks, 4 pairs of pants, 4 shirts, 2 sets of gloves, and 2 hats.
Rolling up to the bus lot could easily be confused with a Ravens tailgate. Hundreds of humans are swimming around in a sea of purple, drinks are flowing, music is pumping, and it is hard to imagine that it is 6 a.m. or that we have a 6-hour drive ahead of us. After getting properly lubricated and acquainted with our fellow bus mates, we are in our seat and rolling to Buffalo.
As the wheels start rolling, the real degen work gets started… Opening up my Sportsbook on my phone, it is time to get our bets in for this main event. Being a lifelong Ravens fan, there was no doubt in my mind our first bet was going to be $550 to win on the Ravens, paying $1050. Brimming with confidence (I did book a 6 hour bus ride for this) I know in my soul the ravens can’t lose, I can almost feel the extra cash in hand when I place the bet. As I am sure many Degens can relate, I could never be satisfied with just one bet, especially on a game I view as a sure thing. I spend the next hour brewing a variety of same game parlays, mixing a variety of props.
- Isaiah Likely over 75 receiving yards
- Derrick Henry over 80 rushing yards
- Lamar Jackson over 40 rushing yards
- Josh Allen touchdown
- Justin Tucker over 6 kick points
Soon enough, I have laid down over $700 in bets for what will surely be a legendary game.
Though confidence and excitement are high, the reality of the remaining four hours of the bus ride is beginning to set in. Opening up my sports book app again, I realize we have crossed into Pennsylvania, and now, online casino gambling is allowed. For a degen, sometimes just finding a game is a win in itself. This is certainly one of those moments.
Over the next 3 hours, we embark on a high-stakes (mobile) casino trip. Battling computer-generated dealers in blackjack, bending virtual cards in baccarat, and rolling a legendary streak in a virtual craps game. Looking up from the front lines of the Casino pit that lives on my phone, I realize I am pumped up $450 and only an hour away from the Bills. Satisfied with my substantial profit (and ready to get the hell off this bus), I cap the session there and withdraw our casino winnings. For those keeping track, we have $700 in bets for the game, and it only costs us $250. (A real degen always brackets their gambling like this)
As the bus gets closer and closer, the anticipation throughout it builds. One moment, we are driving through rural New York, truly in the middle of nowhere. Minutes later, we are driving up a hill, and at the crest is not one but two NFL stadiums (Bills are building a new one) and a herd of blue Buffalo Bills fans partying through the snow. In a scene that was hard to describe and impossible to forget, I can feel that the experience of a Bills game and tailgate is all it is rumored to be.
The stadium is situated in a neighborhood. There are no bars and restaurants lining the stadium, but instead, there are some very normal-looking homes with yards completely filled with very normal-looking cars and fans. Within minutes of getting off the bus, the Bills fans are offering me beers, fireball shots, places by the fire, and, of course, some friendly jabs about the game to come. From start to finish, the Buffalo tailgate is one of the most authentic and enjoyable sporting experiences I have had. Multiple times, I found myself telling Bills fans, "If it isn't us, I hope it's you", and I meant it, they were an awesome crowd.
As the beers, Buffalo wings, and banter continue to flow, so do the hours. Soon, it has been 4 hours out in the snow, and the crowds are beginning to thin in the parking lots and head towards the stadium gates; it is finally time. Doing the same, I start my hike through the snow and masses of humans to get to the gates. I scanned my ticket and found my seat, just 20 minutes before kickoff. Sitting in a sea of Bills fans, I think to myself how sweet it will be to watch my birds take them down and to take all of these suckers' money on my sports bets.
Kickoff… the stadium explodes. I have never heard a louder, more passionate game than this. On the first drive, my Ravens cash in big with a strike to Rashad Bateman, up 7-0 early. Unfortunately, we are playing against Josh Allen, who takes his team right down to tie up the game 7-7 in the first quarter. Expecting a quick rebuttal from the Ravens, I lock in for a huge drive. The drive was huge but not how we hoped; a few plays in, the Ravens put the ball on the ground, and, the Bills recovered, and the stadium errupts as the Bills run this all the way back for a touchdown. The Bills lay it on for the rest of the half, heading to the break up 21-10. At this point, I still feel confident: we are moving the ball, we are the far more talented team, it’s only a touchdown and a field goal, and we are in striking distance. They made a big defensive play, and so can we.
To start the third quarter, my Ravens must have heard the same thing as we came out and scored a field goal, 21-13, then a few minutes later, March down for the touchdown, 21-19. With just seconds left in the third quarter, the urgency is turning up, we line up for a 2 point conversion… and we are stopped. 21-19. The Bills answer with a field goal to make it 24-19 but give us the ball with plenty of time. One touchdown and we are in the lead against a team that has struggled to move the ball since early in the 2nd quarter. Driving down the field, we hit a wide open Mark Andrews for what should be a first down, but in signs to come he drops the ball for a fumble, recovered by Buffalo. It feels as if an anvil has been dropped on my chest, this feels like the killshot. In typical Ravens fashion, our defense held strong and limited the bills to another field goal, 27-19. Keeping us alive and restoring some of my fleeting hope.
After all the mistakes, we are still in this. With 3:29 left in the game, we are down only 8 points. If we are to be Super Bowl champions, they left us too much meat on this bone. Driving down the field, we are moving the ball, picking up momentum with each play. Then, we cough it up again, another fumble. This time, the football gods are smiling on us as we recover the ball and continue marching on our drive.
We keep driving down the field with a big plays from Justice Hill and Mark Andrew’s. With 1:30 left to play, Lamar is dropping back in the pocket, scrambling around buying time, and throws a strike to Isiah Likely in the middle of the end zone, IT'S A BALTIMORE TOUCHDOWN! I am losing my mind, jumping up and down on my seat and screaming loud enough for every Bills fan in Buffalo to hear me. The jobs not done, we need this 2-point conversion to tie the game and force overtime. We snap the ball; in what looks like a mesh concept, I see Mark Andrews wide open in the corner of the end zone. Lamar sees him too and hits him square in the hands. I begin to celebrate, but so does all of Buffalo… what happened…. He dropped the ball. Square in his hands, and it clanks off; just like that, the Ravens season is done.
I am deflated. For a short moment, I believed we had caught it, I believe we were playing overtime. A defeat was hard enough to stomach; learning that is the reality after you believed you had won (even if for just a moment) was crushing.
Buffalo recovers the onside kick, and victory formation is assumed. The bets are dead, and the Ravens are defeated.
Tucking my tail between my legs, I take one last look at an incredible stadium and experience, time to go home and lick my wounds.
I will note that the Bills fans were nothing but pleasant before and during the game, but once they had secured their win, there were many looking for a fight. The walk from my seat to the bus was rather brutal. Between words being hurled my way and the occasional snowball, they didn’t celebrate victory the way I had expected.
Boarding the bus with my fellow Ravens, the vibe on the way home was far from a party. What should have been a 6-hour drive took us just over 9 hours, and there wasn’t so much as a victory cheer to keep the spirits high.
Fun Scorecard: A+ Incredible atmosphere and experience
Gambling Score Card: C, -$250